11. — live in them.] Lev. xviii. 5. Enjoy a long life and every temporal blessing; eternal life, though not promised, would also have been the lot of the true Israelite. Abp. Newcome. See the note on chap. xviii. 9. 15. — I lifted up my hand] I swore; see ver. 5 and note. — And the name thereof is called Bamah unto this day.] The words probably refer to some noted high place, which the Jews frequented to perform their idolatrous worship. W. Lowth. The very word told them their wickedness, that they acted against the express will of God, and framed themselves to the idolatries of the nations. Poole. tions.] The Prophet here expresses the Christian worship by those religious oblations which were proper to his own time; as the other Prophets frequently describe the state of the Christian Church by representations taken from the Jewish temple and service, Isai. xx. 19; lvi. 7; lx. 7; lxvi. 23. W. Lowth. — and all faces from the south to the north] From one end of the land to the other. The length of Judah lay north and south. Poole. 49. — Doth he not speak parables? They complain of the obscurity of my prophecies. Bp. Hall. God therefore commands him, chap. xxi, to utter plainly what, ver. 47, 48, he was here instructed to deliver parabolically. W. Louth, Abp. Newcome. The foregoing chapter presents us with a detail of the favours, conferred by God upon the Jews; of their ingratitude for his blessings, and insensibility to his warnings; and of the severe judgments, which were for this reason to overtake them. God has done infinitely more for us than for the Jews; He has redeemed us by his only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ; He has given us the knowledge of his holy laws, by which we may obtain life; and the warnings, which He gives us, to induce us to serve and fear Him, are not less express, nor less frequent, than those addressed to his ancient people. If, after all, we fall into infidelity and disobedience, we shall be infinitely more criminal than the Jews, and our punishment will be proportionally more severe. Osterwald. Chap. XXI. ver. 2. Son of man, set thy face] Without all parables I say unto thee plainly, "Set thy face toward Jerusalem." Bp. Hall. — set thy face, — drop thy word, — prophesy] These expressions are correspondent to those at chap. xx. 46. Abp. Newcome. — the holy places.] The temple and the several courts, which were holy in different degrees. Abp. Newcome. Before CHRIST 593. He prophesieth against Jerusalem. Before CHRIST 593. 18. But I said unto their children in the wilderness.] This refers to the many pathetical exhortations contained in the Book of Deuteronomy, particularly those in chap. xxiv, xxx, xxxi, and xxxii, which were uttered after that rebellious generation were all consumed, as God had threatened them, (see Numb. xiv. 32, 33; xxvi. 64, 65,) and were designed as warnings to succeeding generations, Deut. xxxi. 16—21. W. Lowth. 25. Wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good.] God intended not here his own statutes and judgments, but the idolatrous statutes and judgments, the corrupt principles and practices, of the heathen nations, to which He sometimes gave up and abandoned his own people, because they first deserted and abandoned Him. This is the sense given to the passage by the Targum of Jonathan, and in the speech of St. Stephen in the New Testament, Acts vii. 42; and the context points to the same interpretation; for that this is its true sense appears chiefly from this, that God here describes these statutes and judgments by characters directly opposite to those He gives of his own in the same chapter. For it appears from ver. 11. 13. 21, and other passages, that the chief distinction of God's own law was that a man "should live in them;" whereas He expressly says of these, that they were statutes and judgments, whereby "they should not live." Also, at ver. 18, we have mention of statutes and of judgments, (the same words in the Hebrew as in this verse,) yet not meaning God's statutes and judgments, but the corrupt customs and manners of their idolatrous ancestors, such as God permitted or gave them up to, because they chose them, as is intimated in ver. 25. The original word for "give," is frequently used in the permissive sense; and therefore "I gave them" in this verse may amount to no more than "I suffered such things." Vitringa, Dr. Waterland, W. Lowth, Dr. Berriman. See also Ps. lxxxi. 12; Rom. i. 24. 26. — I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire &c.] This sufficiently intimates what kind of statutes and judgments God was just before speaking of; namely, the rites and practices of the heathen, whereby God polluted them, that is, gave them up to their own hearts' lusts, to defile and pollute themselves. The Israelites had provoked God many ways, and more especially by their frequent idolatries; and therefore God gave them up to the vilest and most deplorable idolatry of all; namely, that of offering up their children as burnt offerings to Moloch. Vitringa, Dr. Waterland. — that I might make them desolate, &c.] The consequence of which was, that they would be exposed to my anger, and at length would acknowledge my hand in the judgments inflicted on them. Abp. Newcome. 28. — then they saw every high hill, &c.] They cast their eyes upon those hills and groves whereon the heathen had been wont to offer their idolatrous sacrifices; and there, contrary to my commandments, they made their sinful oblations to provoke me to wrath. Bp. Holt. 29. — What is the high place &c.] What mean you that ye go to the high place? Should you not go to the altar of God, and bring your sacrifices to the temple, Before CHRIST 593. h Chap. 16. 21. trespassed a trespass. Or, I told them what the high place was, or, Hannah. God premiseth to gather them by the Gospel. Before CHRIST 593. And the name thereof is called Bamah unto this day. 31. — I will not be enquired of by you.] I will answer you as little as you regard me. Poole. 32. — that which cometh into your mind shall not be at all, &c.] The Jews had all along a fond desire of worshipping the gods of their neighbours, and could not bear that imputation of singularity, to which their peculiar way of worship exposed them. They thought likewise, by worshipping the gods of the heathen, to live more undisturbedly among them; but God tells them here, that He will prevent this purpose of their's from taking effect. W. Lowth. 33. — surely with a mighty hand, &c.] I will no longer try to reclaim you by the gentle methods of patience and forbearance, but will govern you, as masters do rebellious servants, by stripes and corrections, and thus cure you of your hankering after heathen customs and idolatries. W. Lowth. 34. And I will bring you out from the people, &c.] You would have me abandon you for ever, as the nations whom I suffer to go on quietly in their ways. But I will punish you, and retain you in your allegiance to me. Calmet. 35. And I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, &c.] I will bring you into the desert land of your captivity under the heathen, and there will I argue this case with you: laying before you those offences wherewith you have justly provoked me. Bp. Hall. The phrase alludes to the wilderness, through which the Jews passed in their way to Canaan, in order to the trial of the obedient, and the destruction of the rebellious. W. Lowth. 37. — under the rod.] Both of correction and guidance. Bp. Hall. — into the bond of the covenant.] And I will recall you to the memory and recognition of that bond and mutual covenant which has been made between us. Bp. Hall. Or, "I will bring you into the discipline of my covenant;" that is, bring you into the chastisement due for breaking my covenant, Lev. xxvi. 25. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. 38. — will purge out] I will separate the righteous from the wicked; see ver. 37. This may be understood of the captive Israelites in Chaldea and Babylon; God well knew how to distinguish among the captives, the just from the unjust. He will bring back the former into their country, and will disperse the latter into every part of the world. The passage may have further reference to the Jews who rejected our Saviour; they have been driven from their country, and have not re-entered the land of Israel. Calmet. 39. — Go ye. A permission, full of indignation and rebuke. W. Lowth. See the notes on Numb. xxii. 20; 2 Kings ii. 17. 18. 40. For in mine holy mountain, &c.] But for you, who are the true spiritual seed of faithful Israel, you shall all serve me in my holy Church, and I will both expect and graciously accept of those services and devotions which ye shall offer unto me. Bp. Hall. — all of them in the land.] All of the house of Is- Ezekiel foresheweth the destruction of Jerusalem. Before CHRIST 593. of rest. offerings, and the || firstfruits of your oblations, with all your holy things. 43. — and ye shall lothe yourselves] See chap. vi. 9; xvi. 63. 44. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, &c.] As in the height of God's vengeance on the sins of this wretched people, the distant prospect always terminated in a mercy; so with a mercy and a promise of better times the whole of this prophetic scene is closed, in order that those, to whom it is addressed, should, however criminal, not be left in an utter state of desperation, but be afforded some shadow of repose in the prospect of future peace and tranquillity. The idea of mercy is naturally attached to that of repentance and reformation; and with mercy the prophecy ends. Bp. Warburton. 45. Moreover the word &c.] The next chapter should have begun here; as what is contained in the 2nd and following verses of that chapter is an explanation of what is included in the latter part of this. Grotius, Houbigant. 46. — the forest of the south &c.] Ezekiel was in the northern part of Chaldea, and therefore Judea was to the south of him. Abp. Secker supposes, that a city is called a forest, rather from its inhabitants than its buildings. In this verse there are three Hebrew words for the "south." Abp. Newcome. 47. — every green tree &c.] The righteous as well as the wicked, see chap. xxi. 3. Many of these two classes the south, and prophesy against the forest of the south field; — he looked in the liver.] The practice of predicting the future by inspecting the fibres of the liver in an animal recently killed, was very common in antiquity. Grotius conjectures, that the Chaldeans communicated this superstitious custom to the Lydians, the Lydians to the Tuscans, and the Tuscans to the people of Italy. Cabinet. — the Ammonites, and concerning their reproach;] They insulted over their brethren the Jews, for which they are often reproved very severely by the Prophets, and threatened with like judgments. See chap xxv. 2-6, Zeph. ii. 8. 10. W. Lowth. 3. — the righteous and the wicked.] A plain reference to the green tree and the dry, chap. xx. 47. I will sweep every man in the common destruction; the righteous will I remove to their advantage and glory; the wicked to their confusion. Bp. Hall. 3. — that her time may come,] See chap. vii. 7. Her time of punishment and vengeance. Abp. Newcome. 5. — it shall not return any more.] Into its sheath; as the sense is more fully expressed, ver. 30; till it has executed my commands. W. Lowth. The word of the king of Babylon is meant, the instrument of God's vengeance. Colnet. 6. Sigh therefore,—with the breaking of thy loins;] Sigh so deeply and so strongly as to break thy girdle from thy loins, and by this sighing intimate unto them that great sorrow which is coming unto them. Bp. Hall. See Jer. xxii. 9; Dan. vii. 28. 10. — it contemeth the rod of my son, as every tree.] It makes no distinction between the sceptre and common wood; between the branches of the royal family, whom I honoured with the title of my sons, (Ps. lxxxix. 26.) and the meanest of the people. W. Lowth. 11. — of the slayer.] Of the king of Babylon. W. Lowth. 12. — smite therefore upon thy thigh.] An action expressive of grief; compare chap. vi. 11; Jer. xxxi. 19; where see the note. 13. Because it is a trial.] A calamity. W. Lowth. The sense may be, "for the firmness of the sword has been proved; and what if it destroy not only the common branches, but even the rod of the sceptre?" Abp. Newcome. — it shall be no more.] The diadem and throne 14. — smite thine hands together.] A sign of grief, chap. vi. 11; of rage, Numb. xxiv. 10; of astonishment, chap. xxii. 13. But many think it here a gesture of encouragement to the victorious Chaldeans. Abp. Newcome. — and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain: The expression may mean no more than if the Prophet had said, "Let the stroke be repeated twice and thrice," that is, "oftentimes." So that phrase is used, Job xxxiii. 29, "All these things worketh God twice and thrice with man," where our translation very fully expresses the sense "oftentimes." A form of speech, much like those elsewhere used; "For three transgressions, and for four," Amos i. 3. "Give a portion to seven, and also to eight," Eccles. xi. 2. W. Lowth. "The sword of the slain" in this verse should probably be rendered "the sword of the soldiers," that is, of the Babylonians; and "the sword of the great men that are slain" should be "the sword of the great soldier," that is, of the warlike king of Babylon, for thus it is expressly called in the 19th verse, "the sword of the king of Babylon." Dr. Kennicatt. — into their privy chambers. Whither they went to hide themselves; see 1 Kings xxii. 25. W. Lowth. 15. — wrapped up] In the scabbard, but sharpened and ready for slaughter. Colnet. 16. Go thee—either on the right hand, or on the left.] The words are addressed to the sword, which is directed A sword drawn against Israel, Before CHRIST 593. thyself, take the left hand. on the right hand, † or on the left, whithersoever thy face is set. 19. — appoint thee two ways.] "Describe or paint two roads diverging from one." God foreshews his Prophet, that the king of Babylon, coming with his army into Syria, and finding that the Ammonites had entered into a confederacy with Egypt as well as Zedekiah, was in doubt against which of the two people he should first make war; and committed the decision of this matter to his arts of divination, described ver. 21. W. Lowth. 20. — to Rabbath] Or, Rabbah, chap. xxv. 5; the chief city of the Ammonites, 2 Sam. xii. 26; Jer. xlix. 2. 21. For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, — to use divination: he made his arrows bright.] This way of divining by arrows is thus described by St. Jerome, in his commentary upon this place: "They wrote on several arrows the names of the cities they intended to assault, and then putting them all together promiscuously in a quiver, they drew them out thence as lots are drawn; and that city whose name was written on the arrow first drawn, was the city they first made war upon." W. Lowth. — he made his arrows bright.] Or rather, he mingled his arrows; which sense of the word agrees better with the description of this kind of divination given by St. Jerome. It is preferred by Dr. Pocock, who confirms this exposition from the Arabick use of the word, and also by Houbigant. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. Abp. Potter notices the practice among the Greeks, in which divination was made by arrows shaken together in a quiver. The method of divination practised by the idolatrous Arabs, but forbidden by the Koran, is too singular to be unnoticed. "Seven divining arrows were kept at the temple of Mecca; but generally in divination, the idolatrous Arabs made use of three only; on one was written 'My lord hath commanded me,' on another, 'My lord hath forbidden me,' and the third was blank. If the first was drawn, they looked upon it as an approbation of the enterprise in question; if the second, they made a contrary conclusion; but if the third happened to be drawn, they mixed them and drew over again, till a decisive answer was given by one of the others." Abp. Newcome. — he consulted with images.] In Hebrew "teraphim," which signifies all sorts of idols, principally of at the † parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he made his || arrows bright, he consulted with † images, he looked in the liver. 22. At his right hand was the divination for Jerusalem.] His divinations shew that he was to go to the right hand; that is, towards Jerusalem. Dathius. Supposing the face towards the east, the southern branch of the two roads, which was towards the right hand, led towards Jerusalem; for this city lay to the south of Rabbah. You must represent Nebuchadnezzar as coming from Dan, and marching along the Jordan. Here Rabbah was situated at the left hand, and Jerusalem at the right. Abp. Newcome, Michaelis. In coming from beyond the Euphrates into Syria and Phenicia, they commonly took their journey through Damascus. They passed the Euphrates at Thapsacus; entered into Palestine by the plain of Libanus, under mount Hermon, and crossed the Jordan above the lake Semochonites. They did not come directly from Babylon through Arabia Deserta, the shortest route, on account of the sterility of the country. Cabinet. Though the manner, which the king of Babylon chose to determine him what course to take, was such, yet God was pleased so to direct it, that he turned first against Jerusalem. God governs all things by his providence: He ever presides over such events as we imagine to depend upon mere chance; and, generally speaking, over the actions of men: so that men, without knowing it, become the instruments of executing what He has resolved to do or permit. Ostercald. — to appoint captains, to open the mouth in the slaughter.] Whose office it was to encourage the army to fall upon the enemy and destroy them. W. Lowth. 23. And it shall be unto them as a false divination] But this process shall be unto the Jews, when some of their friends behold it, and report it at Jerusalem, as a deceitful lot, such as the event would not verify; it shall even appear so to the Jews, who had sworn false oaths to the Chaldeans, (2 Chron. xxxvi. 13,) and ought therefore to have expected the Divine vengeance. But he (Nebuchadnezzar) is mindful of their perjury, and Before CHRIST 593. of the way. Or, katzes. teraphim. battering rams. oaths made unto them. and against the kingdom. The destruction of the Ammonites. Before CHRIST 593. God; Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are discovered, so that in all your doings your sins do appear; because, I say, that ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand. 25. And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel,] The words are addressed to king Zedekiah, whom the Prophet calls "profane" and "wicked," chiefly with respect to his breaking that solemn oath uttered in the name of God, whereby he had engaged himself to be tributary to the king of Babylon, chap. xvii. 19. W. Lowth. 26. — exalt him that is low, and abuse him that is high.] As Zedekiah shall be brought down from his kingly dignity, so another branch of that family, namely Christ, (see ver. 27.) shall be advanced from an obscure original and low condition, to the supreme degree of sovereignty. W. Lowth. 27. I will overturn,—it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.] This is a threat, that the kingdom should never recover its former glory and strength, but consume, till the sceptre should be quite taken away from Judah, and may be made for the Messiah, who is He that was to come, whose was the dominion, and to whom the Father would give it: so that the final desolation of the temporal kingdom of the seed of David is here threatened, and the eternal kingdom of the Messiah is promised. The triple use of the word "overturn," expresses the certainty of the event. Poole. 28. And thou, son of man, &c.] In ver. 19, 20, Rabbath, the chief city of the Ammonites, was mentioned, as being in equal danger with Jerusalem. God here directs the Prophet to resume the subject of Rabbath, and to declare the ruin of it. Poole. 29. Whiles they see vanity unto thee, whiles they divine a lie &c.] While thy wizards feed thee with false predictions to stir thee up against those already miserable and distressed Israelites, against those wicked revolters from me, whose judgment is now to be fully accomplished. Bp. Hall. — to bring thee upon the necks of them that are slain,] To add thee to the number of those who are slain in Judea, and make thy condition like theirs. W. Lowth, Calmet. 30. — in the land of thy nativity.] The Ammonites were destroyed in their own country. The Jewish nation was sent into captivity. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. 31. — blow against thee] To melt thee, as it were, in the furnace. See chap. xxii. 20, 21. Abp. Newcome. 32. — thou shalt be no more remembered:] See chap. xxv. 10. The Jewish nation still subsists. The Ammonites are lost in the mass of mankind, and have been long forgotten. Abp. Newcome. Chap. XXII. ver. 2. — wilt thou judge,] See chap. xx. 4. — the bloody city?] See chap. xxiii. 37. 45; xxiv. 6. 9; 2 Kings xxi. 16. 3. And they committed whoredoms in Egypt;] Idolatry; see chap. xx. 7, 8. 6. Behold, the princes of Israel.] These were probably the members of the great Sanhedrim, or the king's counsellors and chief officers of state. See Jer. xxvi. 10; xxxvi. 12. W. Lowth. — every one were in thee to their power to shed blood. The Hebrew reads, "with his arm to shed blood." See the margin: and the sense may be, "they have employed all the force of their arms to shed blood in the midst of thee." Calmet. 9. In thee they eat upon the mountains. In the midst of thee there are those that offer idolatrous sacrifices to their false gods, in their high places. Bp. Hall. 10. In thee have they discovered their fathers' nakedness. That is, taken their mother in law to wife, which St. Paul calls, "such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles," 1 Cor. v. 1. W. Lowth. 12. — gifts to shed blood. Innocent blood. Abp. Secker. The judges may be here particularly meant. W. Lowth. — and hast forgotten me.] The forgetfulness of God is the source of the greatest disorders; for as St. Jerome well observes, The remembrance of God excludes all sin. Men rush into crimes in proportion as they forget God. Calmet. tion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord God. 15. — will consume thy filthiness out of thee.] I will purge thee in the furnace of afflictions, and take that method to consume thy dross, and put an end to thy idolatrous practices. Compare ver. 18, 19; chap. xxiii. 27. W. Lowth. 16. And thou shalt take thine inheritance in thyself in the sight of the heathen. The margin of our Bible reads, "Thou shalt be profaned in thyself;" which expresses the sense much better; that is, thou shalt no longer enjoy the privileges of a city called by my name, and set apart for my residence, but shalt be laid open as common ground, to be profaned by infidels. See Isa. xlvii. 6. W. Lowth. 18. — dross. The house of Israel is in my sight like silver alloyed with several baser metals. I am about to act towards them as a refiner, who purifies and separates the metals in the fire. Calmet. 19, 20. — Because ye are all become dross, &c.] Because you are thus depraved, I will deal with you accordingly; I will gather you all up as into one furnace, which shall be Jerusalem, and there I will send the fire of my judgment upon you. Bp. Hall. ¶ Chap. 21. 17. The general corruption of prophets, priests, princes, and people. Before CHRIST 593. wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof. 24. — Thou art the land that is not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation.] Thou art a land notoriously unclean with thy abominable sins, and therefore shall be seized upon by my judgments without mitigation; when my fire shall flame up to consume thee, there shall not be so much as a shower of rain for the quenching thereof. Bp. Hall. The metaphor of fire, which had been used in the foregoing verses, seems to be pursued here; and the admonition of the Prophets is to be understood under the figure of rain. Calmet, W. Lowth. See chap. xx. 46. 25. — a conspiracy of her prophets] That is, of the false prophets. These are often reproved for making a gain of their profession. See Jer. vi. 13; Micah iii. 5. 11. W. Lowth. Probably they agreed together in supporting each other's false prophecies. See chap. xiii. 11, 12. Calmet. — they have devoured souls;] They make merchandise of men's souls; or else they take away their lives by false accusation, and then seize upon their substance. Compare ver. 27, and Matt. xxiii. 14. W. Lowth. Or, the consequence of their false prophecies, the destruction of men's lives by the judgments which fall on impenitence, is charged on them. 26. — and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths.] Absenting themselves from the holy rites to be performed in my courts. Abp. Newcome. 28. And her prophets have daubed them &c.] Have soothed them in their sins; and in a base flattery have spoken plausible things to them, no less false than pleasing. Bp. Hall. See chap. xiii. 6—10, and the note there. 30 — but I found none.] The Jews had generally given themselves up to idolatry, injustice, uncleanness, and abominations of every kind; and had profaned in the most shocking manner the religion and the service of God. The corruption spread among persons in a publick character: the prophet seduced the people; the priests broke the law, and profaned the holy things; the magistrates were addicted to injustice, dishonest gain, fraud, and violence. This deprived them of the Divine protection, and obliged God, as it were, to put his threatenings into execution. These sins, no doubt, God does still abhor, and much more in Christians: to whom the punishments of the Jews should be a warning, and especially to pastors and governours, that they be not the authors of corruption and of publick calamities, and so, in the end, of eternal perdition to those, whom God has placed under their care. Ostervald. Chap. XXIII. ver. 2. — there were two women.] The style of this chapter, like that of chap. xvi, is adapted to men among whom, at that time, no refinement subsisted. Large allowance must be made for language addressed to an ancient Eastern people, in the worst period of their history; all whose ideas were sensual, and whose grand inducement to idolatry seems to have been, the brutal impurities which it encouraged. Abp. Newcome. — the daughters of one mother.] Samaria and Jerusalem are described in this chapter as sisters, the offspring of the same land or country. Compare chap. xvi. 46; Jer. iii. 7, 8. W. Lowth. — in their youth.] The time when the Israelites were in Egypt, or were lately departed out of it, is called their "youth" in the Prophets, because that was the time when God first owned them for his people. See ver. 8. 19; chap. xvi. 8. 22; Jer. ii. 2; Hos. ii. 15. W. Louth. — horsemen riding upon horses.] Horses were scarce in Judea, which made the Jews, in proportion as they renounced their dependence upon Heaven, apply themselves to the neighbouring countries for troops of horse, in the time of any hostile invasion, Isa. xxx. 16; xxxi. 1. W. Louth. 3. — Set on a pot,] If this figure should appear to any one undignified, let him remember that it bears allusion to the sacred rites of the temple, and therefore nothing low or mean was associated with it in the ideas of the Jews, to whom the prophecy was directed. Bp. Louth. The destruction of Jerusalem is represented by a boiling pot or caldron, Jer. i. 13; Ezek. xi. 3. W. Louth. 4. And the names of them were Aholah the elder, &c.] Both of these divided people had their names from a tent, or tabernacle. Israel, which is the greater part of the ten tribes, is Aholah, "her own tabernacle," which she would needs erect according to her own device, to draw away clients from my temple. Judah is Aholibah, "my tent or tabernacle in her;" because of the place of my worship settled there. Bp. Hall. 4. — the choice bones.] The choice joints. These represent the great men of Jerusalem. Abp. Newcome. 5. — when she was mine;] When she was under my dominion. Houbigant. While she professed to be mine. Bp. Hall. — on the Assyrians her neighbours.] The king of Assyria was a very powerful prince, and therefore his alliance was courted both by the kings of Israel and Judah, 2 Kings xv. 29; xvi. 7; and ver. 12 of this chapter. W. Louth. The Assyrians taught them the worship of Baal, and inspired them with the rage for making sacrifices upon high places. Calmet. 5. Take the choice of the flock,] This belongs in sense to the former verse. W. Lowth. — burn also the bones under it,] The bones of those who have been unjustly slain in the midst of the city: see chap. xi. 7. W. Lowth. Place the bones at the bottom of the pot under the flesh. Calmet. 6. — clothed with blue.] The Chaldeans, the Assyrians, and the Persians, chiefly admired the colour of purple and hyacinth. Dresses of these colours were reserved for the prince and the great lords, and one of the most distinguished rewards for merit and service was the permission to wear them. Calmet. See Nahum ii. 3. they took her sons and her daughters, and slew her with the sword: and she became † famous among women; for they had executed judgment upon her. 6. — Woe to the bloody city.] This is the common character of Jerusalem. So she had made herself, partly by the blood of the Prophets, partly by the blood of innocents offered in the sacrifices of her idols, partly in the violences and outrages which the higher sort committed upon the meaner people. Reading. — whose scum is therein.] Scum denotes filthiness. Jerusalem is the boiling pot, which is not purged from its foul sins: the flesh and bones are the Jews which have fled hither for safety. Bp. Hall. — bring it out piece by piece:] Put thou in thy hook and bring out the flesh and bone piecemeal wheresoever it lights, without any choice or deliberation, to shew that every one of them shall be fetched out thence without difference. Bp. Hall. — let no lot fall upon it.] Conquerors used to cast lots what share of the vanquished they would save: see 7. — she set it upon the top of a rock:] She seemed to glory in her crime, by doing it in the most open and audacious manner, so as to challenge God's vengeance. Dr. Blayney. — she poured it not upon the ground, to cover it with dust:] The words allude to the command of the law, Lev. xvii. 13, that they cover the blood of any beast or other living creature that was slain with dust: which precept was intended, not only to prevent their eating of blood, but also to give men a sort of horreur at the sight of bloodshed. W. Lowth. 8. — her whoredoms brought from Egypt.] All the precautions taken by Moses, all the zeal of Joshua and his successors, were insufficient to root out the propensity to idolatry, which the Jews had imbibed in Egypt. Calmet. 8. — I have set her blood upon the top of a rock,] Her punishment shall be as notorious as her sin. W. Lowth, Calmet. 10. — and she became famous among women;] And she became a noted and remarkable example of God's judgments among the nations. Bp. Hall. 11. And when her sister Aholibah saw this, Saw the judgment inflicted on Samaria; instead of taking warning by it, she advanced to greater degrees of idolatry. Bp. Hall, W. Louth. 14. — men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans] The defiled men worshipped by the Chaldeans must be meant. These the inhabitants of Chaldea had represented on the walls of Jerusalem; and the Jews desired to possess the idols, that they might pay them Divine honours. Abp. Newcome. Such as Bel, Nebo, and Merodach, mentioned Isa. xlvi. 1; Jer. l. 2. Abp. Newcome, W. Louth. 15. — exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads.] Flowing, luxuriant, in the turbans worn by them. Abp. Newcome. 16. — and sent messengers] This probably relates to those times when a correspondence was maintained Aholibah is to be plagued by her lovers. Before CHRIST 593. ot, disjointed. her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was † alienated from them. 47. — shall stone them] See chap. xvi. 38; John viii. 3. 49. — and ye shall bear the sins of your idols:] Ye shall bear the punishment due to your sins of idolatry. W. Lowth. Chap. XXIV. ver. 1. — in the ninth year,] Ezekiel, who was then a captive in Mesopotamia, saw in spirit the commencement of the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, and he wrote down the date of it that very day, that the Jews who were near him, and who could not fail of knowing in a short time what had happened to the capital of their country, might also learn, that the Prophet did not utter vain prophecies, and that his predictions were no longer to be distrusted. Calmet. 3. — Because thou saidst, Aha.] Because thou didst insult and rejoice in the profanation of my sanctuary. Bp. Hull. Compare Job xxxix. 25. 4. — to the men of the east] By the men of the East may be meant the Chaldeans, chap. xxi. 19, 20. Ammon is likewise reckoned amongst those countries, which God foretold by Jeremiah should be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon, Jer. xxv. 21. W. Lowth. It is possible, however, that the Arabians may be here meant, the Ishmaelites, the tented inhabitants of Arabia Deserta. God might be said to give the country of Moab and Ammon to them, not that they ever subdued it by their arms, but because, when the inhabitants were carried captive beyond the Euphrates, the neighbouring Arabs, charmed with the beauty and the fertility of these provinces, rushed into the country and occupied their seats. This exposition seems to be confirmed by the latter part of this, and by the following verse, which express clearly the genius and the mode of life of the Arabs. "They shall eat thy fruit, and they shall drink thy milk; and I will make Rabbah a stable for camels, and the Ammonites a couching-place for flocks." Their food is milk, their riches flocks, and upon camels they transport themselves and their property from place to place. Calmet, Harmer. — their palaces] The word may also mean their a Jer. 49. 1, &c. 9. — I will even make the pile for fire great.] I will greatly aggravate her judgments. Bp. Hall. 10, 11. Heap on wood, — consume the flesh, &c.] See that full and exquisite vengeance be executed upon the wicked city. Bp. Hall. 11. — that the brass of it] The burning of the brass denotes that the judgments of God would fall upon the city as well as upon the inhabitants. Abp. Newcome. 12. She hath wearied herself with lies. She hath multiplied her idolatries: idols being elsewhere called lies. W. Lowth. — and her great scum went not forth] All her wickedness is still within her unrepented of, unamended. Bp. Hall. 13. In thy filthiness is lewdness:] That rust and scum which is in thee is thine abominable lewdness, or idolaty. Bp. Hall. — because I have purged thee, and thou wast not purged.] I did what was requisite on my part towards thy conversion, but thou refusedst to comply with those frequent calls and exhortations which I gave thee; (see the note on Jer. xxxi. 18; and therefore my Spirit shall not strive with thee any longer, but I will proceed to execute my judgments upon thee. W. Lowth. 16. — the desire of thine eyes] Thy wife, the object of thy affection. W. Lowth. — with a stroke:] Not by an ordinary death, but by an unexpected blow. Calmet. 17. — bind the tire &c.] Abstain from all mourning: use thy ordinary dress upon thine head. Whereas in the times of mourning it was customary sometimes to shave the head: see Lev. xiii. 45; Jer. vii. 29; xvi. 6. The priests were particularly forbidden to uncover their heads in the time of mourning. W. Lowth. VOL. II. — and put on thy shoes upon thy feet.] Going barefoot was another expression of sorrow, 2 Sam. xv. 30. W. Lowth. Addison, in his account of the modern mourning of the Jews in Barbary, says, "The relations of the deceased, for seven days after the interment, stir not abroad; or if by some extraordinary occasion they are forced to go out of doors, it is without shoes; which is a token with them that they have lost a dear friend." Harmer. — cover not thy lips.] Covering the lips was another token of mourning, Lev. xiii. 45; Micah iii. 7. W. Lowth. The author above mentioned, in his account of the Jews of Barbary, thus describes one of their mourning rites: "They return from the grave to the house of the deceased, where one as chief mourner receives them, with his jaws tied up with a linen cloth, after the same manner that they bind up the dead; and by this the mourner is said to testify, that he was ready to die with his friend. And thus muffled, the mourner goes for seven days; during which time the rest of his friends come twice every twenty-four hours to pray with him." Harmer. — and eat not the bread of men.] Of mourners. Abp. Secker. Eat not the bread of consolation wont to be prepared by the humane, and sent to those in deep affliction. Harmer. See the note on Jer. xvi. 7. 18. — and I did in the morning &c.] Of the next day. Syriack Version, Abp. Secker. 21. — I will profane my sanctuary, &c.] I will deliver my temple into the hands of the heathen, and they shall profane and destroy it, chap. vii. 19, 20. That temple wherein you placed your glory, and thought my residence there your greatest protection. W. Lowth. — whom ye have left] Whom ye left behind you in the city, when you were carried captive. W. Lowth. 24. Thus Ezekiel is unto you a sign.] See the note on chap. xii. 6, from Fragments to Calmet. 26. That he that escapeth in that day] See chap. xxxiii. 21, 22. 27. In that day shall thy mouth be opened] Then will I give thee a new commission to speak, and that not by signs as at present, but with freedom and plainness: the event, so exactly answering thy predictions, shall give a new authority to what thou speakest. See chap. iii. 26; xxix. 21. W. Lowth. — and thou shalt be a sign] See ver. 24. Ezekiel was a sign to the house of Israel in various instances, and described by sensible representations the miseries which God was about to bring upon that people. That his predictions were fully accomplished we learn from the conclusion of the books of Kings and Chronicles; from the 39th and 52nd chapters of Jeremiah; and most particularly from the Lamentations of that Prophet, who was an eye-witness of the desolations of his country, and the captivity of his people. How long did God wait! how often did He call, "Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not inhabited!" But she refused to be instructed, and God's soul did depart from her. Let us hear, and fear, and take better impressions from such words of exhortation, and cleanse our hands, and purify our hearts, from the defilement of our sins. Let us speedily embrace the overtures of our peace, whilst the door of mercy stands open: turning without delay from our rebellious ways, and doing those things which are well pleasing to God, that so we may be reconciled to Him, and rejoice in the light of his countenance, and finally obtain from Him the salvation of our souls and bodies, through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Reading. Chap. XXV. ver. 2. — against the Ammonites.] The chronological order of this chapter is after chap. xxxiii. 21, &c. at a time when not only the taking of Jerusalem — she is turned unto me.] Her traffick and her wealth are come into my stores. Compare Isa. lx. 5. Bp. Hall. — I shall be replenished.] Trading interest will turn to me; they, that carried merchandise to Jerusalem, will now bring it to me. Poole. Besides which, as Tyre was a noted market for all sorts of trade; so when Jerusalem was taken and sacked, the spoil of the city was carried thither for sale; and probably several of the inhabitants, being made captives, were sold there for slaves; a traffick the Tyrians dealt in very much, chap. xxvii. 13. This interpretation may be confirmed by comparing it with Joel iii. 4—6, where the Prophet upbraids the Tyrians for making merchandise, both of the persons and substance of the Jews, when they came into their hands. To the same purpose we read 1 Mac. iii. 41, that when Lysias came with great forces to subdue the Jews, the merchants of the country took silver and gold, and came into the camp, to buy the children of Israel for slaves. W. Lowth. — on the sea &c.] They shall be as loud, as numerous, as irresistible as the waves of the sea. This is one of the most beautiful and expressive images which occur in the magnificent prophecy here recorded. Abp. Newcome. 3. — I am against thee, O Tyrus.] This prophecy respects the same siege of Tyre which is foretold in the 47th chapter of Jeremiah. The profane authors extant in the time of St. Jerome said nothing of this people: she is turned unto me: I shall be replenished, now she is laid waste: 4. — I will also scrape her dust from her.] Her very soil and earth shall be taken off and removed. Bp. Hall. 5. And I will make Rabbah] See chap. xxi. 20. The capital city of the Ammonites. 5. It shall be a place for the spreading of nets] "Passing by Tyre from curiosity only, I came to be a mournful witness of the truth of that prophecy, 'that Tyre the queen of nations should be a rock for fishers to dry their nets:' two wretched fishermen with miserable nets had just given over their occupation." Bruce. On the north side of Tyre there is an old Turkish ungarrisoned castle; besides which you see nothing here but a mere Babel of broken walls, pillars, vaults, &c. there being not so much as one entire house left. Its present inhabitants are only a few wretches harbouring themselves in the vaults, and subsisting themselves 6. — clapped thine hands, and stamped with the feet.] Gestures sometimes used to express joy and satisfaction, Job xxvii. 23; Lam. ii. 15; Jer. xviii. 27. W. Lowth. See the note on Job xxvii. 23. 8. — Moab and Seir] Seir is the same with Edom: see chap. xxxv. 2. — is like unto all the heathen;] We see no difference betwixt Judah and other nations. God hath no more power to preserve them, than the God of their neighbours. Bp. Hall. 9. I will open the side of Moab] I will make a passage for his enemies to invade his frontier. W. Lowth. — Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriath-aim.] They were the chief frontier towns of Moab. Calmet. 10. Unto the men of the east with the Ammonites.] That is, together with the Moabites, I will deliver up the Ammonites unto the men of the East; see ver. 4. Moab and Ammon are joined together, Zeph. ii. 8, 9. Nebuchadnezzar subdued both. Abp. Newcome. 12. — Because that Edom hath dealt against the house of Judah] The Idumeans, being the posterity of Esau, bore an ancient grudge against the Jews, on account of their ancestor's losing his right of primogeniture, and the subduing of Edom by David afterwards, 2 Sam. viii. 14. Upon both these accounts they took all opportunities of venting their spite towards the Jewish nation particularly; see 2 Chron. xxviii. 17. 13. — Teman;—Dedan] Noted cities of Idumea. See Jer. xlix 7, 8. 14. — by the hand of my people Israel: After the restoration of the Jews, Idumea was subdued by them under the conduct of Judas Maccabeus, 1 Macc. v. 3; 2 Macc. x. 16, 17. And afterwards the high priest Hyrcanus made an entire conquest of the country. Dean Prideaux. Providence would not permit that they should be punished by other hands than those of the Jews, whom they had treated with so much cruelty. Calmet. 15. — Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge.] The Philistines being borderers upon the Jews, were their ancient enemies, from the time of the Judges downward, more particularly in the time of Ahaz: see 2 Chron. xxviii 18. W. Lowth. Amos accuses them of having sold to the Idumeans the captives which they had taken in Judea; Amos i 5—8 Calmet. 16. — and I will cut off the Cherethims.] The Cherethims or Cherethites are the same with the Philistines, or a tribe of that people, 1 Sam. xxx. 14; Zeph. ii. 5. W. Lowth. — the remnant] The Philistines had been much weakened in preceding wars by the kings of Egypt and of Chaldea; and therefore they are called "the remnant." Calmet. See Jer. xxv. and xviii. 3. — at the entry of the sea,] A sea-port commodiously situated for the commerce of the Mediterranean. Calmet. — which art a merchant of the people] Tyre is called by Isaiah "a mart of nations," chap. xxiii. 3. Ezekiel, as it were commenting upon those words of Isaiah, recounts in this chapter the various nations, whose commodities were brought to Tyre, and were bought and sold by the Tyrians. Bp. Newton. 4. Thy borders are in the midst of the seas,] See chap. xxvi. 5. 19. 6. — her daughters which are in the field] By the daughters of Tyre are meant, the lesser towns which were under her jurisdiction, as the mother city or seat of the kingdom. W. Lowth. 7. — Behold, I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadrezzar &c.] The Prophet in this place expressly declares, that the city should be taken and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. Shalmaneser king of Assyria had besieged Tyre, but without success; the Tyrians had with a few ships beaten his large fleet: but yet Nebuchadnezzar should prevail. Ezekiel not only foretold the siege, but mentioned it afterwards as a past transaction. See chap. xxix. 18. Bp. Newton. It hath been questioned among learned men, which of the Tyres was the subject of these prophecies; whether Old Tyre, that was seated on the continent, or New Tyre, that was built in an island almost over against it. The truest and best answer I conceive to be, that the prophecies appertain to both, some expressions being applicable only to the former, and others only to the latter. Compare chap. xxvii. 3, with ver. 4 and 25; xxvi. 7, &c. with Isa. xxiii. 2. 4. 6; and chap. xxvi. 10, with ver. 12, and xxviii. 8. From these passages it appears that the insular Tyre, as well as the Tyre upon the continent, is included in these prophecies: they are both comprehended under the same name, and both spoken of as one and the same city, part built on the continent, and part on an island adjoining. It is commonly said indeed, that when Old Tyre was closely besieged, and was near falling into the hands of the Chaldeans, then the Tyrians fled from thence, and built New Tyre in the island: but the learned Vitringa hath proved at large, that New Tyre was founded several ages before, and was the station for ships, and considered as part of Old Tyre: and Pliny, speaking of the compass of the city, reckons both the old and the new together. Bp. Newton. 8. — and lift up the buckler] In forming the testudo. Michaelis. In the practice of this manoeuvre the men approached towards the wall with their bucklers lifted up above their heads, and so closely pressed together as to form a shield impenetrable to the darts of the besieged. Calmet. 9. — and with his axes] Any instrument used in demolishing buildings. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. 10—12. — their dust shall cover thee: &c.] A lively description of the tumult and desolation that attends a conquering army making themselves masters of a great city; compare Nahum ii. 3, 4. 9; iii. 2, 3. W. Lowth. 12. — thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water.] The sea shall overflow thy ruins; see ver. 19. W. Lowth. 14. — be built no more.] This is true of Old Tyre; it has been built no more: New Tyre, taken by Alexander, was built upon an island: Nebuchadnezzar quite destroyed Old Tyre, and the ruins were made use of by Alexander to effect the destruction of New Tyre. The prophecy was also fulfilled upon New Tyre, whose inhabitants were quite destroyed by Alexander when he took the city, and afterwards the city itself became desolate. W. Lowth. 15. — Shall not the isles shake] Shall not all the sea-coasts round about be afraid and amazed at thy destruction? Bp. Hull. See the note from Vitringa, on Isa. xi. 11. The mourning at the fall of Tyrus. Before CHRIST 585. tremblings. b Rev. 18. 9. seas. 16, 17. Then all the princes of the sea &c.] All the princes and rich merchants of Sidon, Carthage, and other maritime cities, that maintained a trade with Tyre, and got great wealth by that means; they whose "merchants are princes," as Isaiah speaks of the merchants of Tyre, chap. xxiii. 8; they shall express a deep sense and concern for her misfortunes; compare chap. xxvii. 30--32; xxxii. 10. W. Lowth. — shall clothe themselves with trembling;] See the like bold expressions, chap. vii. 27; Ps. xxxv. 26; cix. 29; cxxxii. 18. 17. — strong in the sea,] Tyre is called "the strength of the sea," Isa. xxiii. 4; being strong both by its situation and the strength of its naval forces, upon which account it was formidable to all who had any trading upon the sea. W. Lowth. 18. Now shall the isles tremble? Ver. 15. St. Jerome translates it, "Now shall the ships tremble," that is, all seafaring men; see chap. xxvii. 29, 30; Isa. xxiii. 14. W. Lowth. — at thy departure.] Into captivity. W. Lowth, Chaldee Paraphrase. At thy forsaking of the city and flying in ships. Houbigant. See Bp. Lowth on Isa. xxiii. 1. The Tyrians having planted colonies at Tarshish and upon the coasts of Cluttin, it was natural for them, when pressed with dangers and difficulties at home, to fly to their friends and countrymen abroad for refuge and protection. That they really did so, St. Jerome asserts upon the authority of Assyrian histories, now lost and perished. Bp. Newton. 19. — when I shall bring up the deep upon thee, &c.] This may mean literally, that the sea should come up and cover the ruins of the city; see ver. 12. W. Lowth. Or, that the Babylonians should break in like a deluge upon the city, and swallow it up. Bp. Hull. Jeremiah compares the army of the king of Egypt to a flood; see Jer. xlvi. 7. 20. — with them that descend into the pit, &c.] Into the place of departed souls, as our Saviour speaks concerning Capernaum, Luke x. 15; compare Isa. xiv. 11. 15; Ezek. xxxii. 18. 24; and brought to utter desolation, like cities which have been long ago buried in oblivion. W. Lowth. — set glory in the land of the living;] When I shall restore other cities, conquered by the king of Babylon, to that flourishing condition they formerly enjoyed among the inhabitants of this world W. Lowth. 21. — a terror,] A terrible example of my vengeance to all cities and countries. W. Lowth. — though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never be found again,] Compare ver. 14, and note. The expression denotes utter destruction, Ps. xxxvii. 36. W. Lowth. Chap. XXVII. ver. 2. — take up a lamentation] This alludes to the mournful ditties used at funerals, wherein the mourning women recounted every thing that was valuable or praiseworthy belonging to the deceased, and then lamented his loss, Jer. ix. 17, 18. In like manner those that traded with Tyre should mourn over her and lament the loss of her riches and greatness; compare chap. xxvi. 16, 17; and see ver. 32 of this chapter. W. Lowth. — thy builders] Ship-builders chiefly, in which the strength and glory of Tyre consisted; see ver. 5. — blue and purple from the isles of Elishah] Blue and purple are elsewhere reckoned among those colours which set off the richest attire; see Exod. xxv. 4; Jer. x. 9. They were brought from the islands of the Egean sea, particularly Coos, famed for purple among heathen authors. Elishah denotes the countries upon the coast of Greece; a part of Peloponnesus retains the name of Elis. W. Lowth. Bochart explains "Elishah" of Peloponnesus; and Michaelis remarks the resemblance of the name to Hellenes, who are said by Herodotus to have settled in the Peloponnesus. Abp. Newcome. — which covered thee.] Perhaps the awning placed over the ship. Harmer. St. Jerome suggests, that it might have been the dress of the pilots and the rowers. Calmet. — they traded the persons of men] Sellers of men for slaves are branded by St. Paul as highly criminal, I Tim. i. 10. Thessaly abounded with them. Bochart observes, that Pontus, to which the Tibareni extended themselves, was remarkable for slaves; and that the Grecian slaves were the most valuable of any. Abp. Newcome. — vessels of brass] Mines of copper are worked in Caucasus to this day; and a village called Kubescha, on that mountain, is celebrated for the elegance of its brazen vessels. Michaelis. — and Pannag,] This word is not elsewhere to be found; some suppose it to be not the name of a place, but of some rich ointment or gum. W. Lowth. — and Chilmad.] Carmania; according to the Septuagint and Chaldee. Abp. Newcome. — though thou set thine heart as the heart of God: ] Though thou hast in thy proud thoughts equalled thyself with God. Bp. Hall. Ezekiel here censures the pride of the king of Tyre, as he had before condemned the people for their insolence. For these and their other vices, more especially for their insults and injuries against the Jews, chap. xxvi. 2, the Prophets prophesied against them; see Isa. xxiii. 9. Bp. Newton. 5. — thy ship boards] The decks of thy ships. W. Lowth. — of Senir:] A part of the ridge of mount Hermon, in the eastern half tribe of Manasseh, Deut. iii. 9; 1 Chron. v. 23. Abp. Newcome. 6. — the company of the Ashurites have made thy benches of ivory.] The Assyrians have made the seats of ivory for the rowers in a very costly manner. W. Lowth. Probably they were the seats in the cabins of the royal galleys that were thus ornamented. Abp. Newcome. — Chittim] The isles of Chittim are the islands and countries lying upon the coast of the Mediterranean sea, Jer. ii. 10. See note at Numb xxiv. 24. 7. Fine linen with broidered work from Egypt] Michaelis calls this chapter the most ancient monument of mercantile history. Abp. Newcome. — to be thy sail.] This shews to what an excess of prodigality the Tyrians were come, to use such costly manufactures for sails to their ships. Suetonius, in his Life of Caligula, reckons this among several instances of that emperor's extravagance, that he furnished his pleasure boats with costly sails, and other expensive ornaments. Bishop Newton compares this luxury in the Tyrian shipping with the elegance and magnificence of Cleopatra's galley, when she sailed down the river Cydnus to meet Antony. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. Maillet says of Egypt, "there is still a considerable quantity of cloth made here, but it is far short of the perfection of that which was formerly brought from Egypt." Hasselquist is of a different opinion: "By what we can see of the linen wrapped round the mummies, the famous linen of the Egyptians was no better than what is made at present in this country; it is however softer and of a looser texture, for which reason it lasts longer, and does not wear out so soon as ours." Now as the persons embalmed were of great distinction, it is probable that the linen, in which the mummies were wrapped, was the finest at that time in Egypt: but if it was so coarse, why is it represented in this passage of Ezekiel as such a piece of magnificence for the ships of Tyre to have their sails of the linen of Egypt? Certainly, because though coarse in our eyes, it was thought to be very valuable when used even for clothing; and if masting was then commonly used for sails, as appears from Niebuhr to be the case at present 8. — Arvad] The island Aradus at the mouth of the river Eleutherus, on the coast of Phenicia, opposite to Tyre. The Arvadite is mentioned, Gen. x. 18. It is also called Arpad or Arphad, 2 Kings xviii. 34; Isa. x. 9; Jer. xlix. 23. W. Lowth. The Tyrians were so opulent, that they employed the inhabitants of other cities in the servile office of rowers and mariners. Calmet. 9. — of Gebal] Probably Biblos on the coast of Phenicia. 10. — Lud] Probably an Egyptian colony. Abp. Newcome. — Phut] The African shepherds. Bochart. These people, though Africans, are joined with the Persians, chap. xxxviii. 5. W. Lowth. — they hanged the shield and helmet in thee;] In their garrisons which they kept in time of peace. W. Lowth. Sandys speaks of one of the gates of the seraglio at Constantinople being "hung with shields and scimitars." Parkhurst. 11. The men of Arvad] See ver. 8. — The Gammadims] These were, as many think, a people in Phenicia. W. Lowth. 12. Tarshish] See note at 1 Kings x. 22. 13. Javan,] Greece, Dan. viii. 21. It was so called from Javan the son of Japhet, Gen. x. 2: from whom the Greeks are called Jones in their own tongue. Michaelis. All Greece, except Peloponnesus, was anciently called Ionia. W. Lowth. — Tubal, and Meshech,] Sons of Japhet, Gen. x. 2. Before CHRIST 588. Or, stoppers of chinks. strengtheners. The riches and large commerce of Tyrus Before CHRIST 538. Or. merchandise. they were thy merchants: they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass in thy || market. 14. — Togarmah] By "Togarmah" Bochart understands Cappadocia. The Septuagint reads "Thorgama," Gen. x. 3; which comes near in sound to Trogma or Trocma, a part of Cappadocia. W. Lowth. 15. — Dedan] A city in the Persian gulph, now called Dadan. Bochart, Michaelis. To this place the inhabitants of the Eastern isles or sea-coasts brought their wares. Abp. Newcome. The Dedan here spoken of was derived from that Dedan mentioned Gen. x. 7, the son of Raamah or Regina. W. Lowth. — many isles were the merchandise of thine hand.] They exported thy manufactures, "the wares of thy making," as they are called in the following verse; and by way of return brought thee in ivory and other rarities from India. W. Lowth. 16. Syria was thy merchant] Although it be certain that some of the wares mentioned in this verse were not the natural product of Syria, yet they might all have formed articles of the Syrian trade. The ingenious author of the Ruins of Palmyra supposes, that it was the East India trade which so enriched that city, and he imagines that this was at least as ancient as the time of Solomon; Tyre therefore might have had these commodities conveyed to it in the time of Ezekiel, through Palmyra, and Syria might have been its merchant for them. E. 17. — wheat of Minnith,] These were the commodities which the Jews imported to Tyre, chiefly the necessary provisions for food; the Tyrians having none of their 18. — wine of Helbon,] Helbon is supposed the same part of Syria which is called Chalybontis by Ptolemy; now Aleppo: Strabo and Hesychius mention Chalybonian wine as the produce of Syria. Athenæus says, "It was so excellent, that the Persian king drank no other;" and Posidonius says, "that it grew in Damascus of Syria." W. Lowth. — and white wool.] The wool was dyed purple at Tyre. W. Lowth. 19. Dan—and Javan] By "Dan" St. Jerome understands the town afterwards called Cesarea Philippi, in the tribe of Dan. The Javan here mentioned is thought by Bochart to mean the southern part of Arabia. W. Lowth. — bright iron.] Steel or wrought iron. Abp. Newcome. — cassia, and calamus,] These articles being aromatick gums, confirm Bochart's interpretation in the note above; they are known not to grow in Greece but in Arabia. W. Lowth. 20. Dedan] This is probably to be understood of the posterity of that Dedan, who was Abraham's grandson; see chap. xxv. 13. W. Lowth. — in precious clothes] In the margin, "clothes of freedom:" literally, "clothes of stripping off for riding:" it seems to mean such clothes as were used in riding, and occasionally stripped off the horse or other beast; that is, a kind of horsecloths, on which the ancients used to ride, before the invention of saddles with stirrups, which were not known till long after: in one word, housings. Parkhurst. 22. — Raamah,] Raamah was son of Cush, and father of Sheba. According to Bochart, Raamah is a city of Arabia on the Persian gulph. 23. Haran,] See Gen. xi. 31. — Canneh, and Eden,] Supposed by some to be ports in Arabia Felix. W. Lowth. Before CHRIST 538. of freedom. were the merchants of thy hand. The great and unrecoverable fall thereof. Before CHRIST 588. [ Or, excellent things. foldings. a Rev. 18. 9, &c. with all. § Or, wares. the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad, were thy merchants. 24. — bound with cords, and made of cedar.] Carefully packed up in chests of cedar, to give these clothes a fine scent, and to preserve them from decay. W. Louth. 25. The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee] Ships of Tarshish signify sometimes in Scripture any trading or merchant ships; see Isa. ii. 16. W. Louth, Calmet. The Prophet, having reckoned up the principal countries which trailed with Tyre, now adds, in comprehensive terms, that all merchant adventurers sung or spake great things of her riches; or as the word may be rendered, "they ruled or governed in thy markets." W. Louth. 26. — into great waters:] Under these beautiful and expressive figures Tyre is represented as brought into danger by her statesmen, and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar; see the like comparison Isa. xxxiii. 23. Abp. Newcome, W. Louth. The Prophet is here speaking of Tyre under the image of a ship. Bp. Warburton. 29. — upon the land:] The shore of the adjoining island, from which they viewed the conflagration of their city. Abp. Newcome. for thee with bitterness of heart and bitter wailing. 30. — against thee.] Over thee; as persons mourn over the dead or the unfortunate; Septuagint and Vulgate. W. Louth. — and shall cast up dust &c.] See 1 Sam. iv. 12; Job ii. 12. 31. — utterly bald] Another expression of publick sorrow, Jer. xlvii. 5; Micah i. 16. 34. In the time when thou shalt be broken] In the time when thou shalt be destroyed by the Babylonian forces, which like a raging sea shall come in upon thee; thy trade, and all the commerce that thou hadst with other nations, shall utterly fail. Bp. Hall. 36. — shall hiss at thee:] By way of insult and decision; see 1 Kings ix. 8; as men are apt to despise those in adversity, whom they courted and respected in prosperity. The Chaldee Paraphrase renders it, "they shall be astonished;" and this sense agrees better with the lamentations of the seafaring men, mentioned in the foregoing verses. W. Louth. Chap. XXVIII. ver. 2. — the prince of Tyrus.] His name was Ithobal; as appears from the Phenician annals extracted from Josephus. Calmet, Abp. Newcome. God's judgment upon the prince of Tyrus. Before CHRIST 388. a Isa. 31. 3. the seat of God, in the † midst of the seas; a yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God: month, &c.] This and the three following chapters are joined together, because they treat of the same subject; though they consist of prophecies uttered at very different periods of time. The period assigned at the head of this chapter is during the siege of Jerusalem, and, agreeably to ver. 6, 7, may be immediately after Pharaoh's retreat, foretold by Jeremiah, chap. xxxvii. 7. Abp. Newcome. 2. — against Pharaoh] Pharaoh being a common name to all the kings of Egypt, this prince was called Pharaoh-hophra by Jeremiah, chap. xlv. 30: and Apries by Herodotus. W. Louth. 3. Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel: ] In thy own conceit. Bp. Hall. The fame of Daniel's wisdom was quickly spread over Chaldea upon his being advanced to several posts of honour and dignity by Nebuchadnezzar; see Dan. ii. 48. The Phoenicians, of whom the Tyrians were a colony, valued themselves for their wisdom and ingenuity, as being the inventors of navigation, of letters, and sciences; compare Zech. ix. 2. W. Lowth. 3. — the great dragon] The crocodile is alluded to. Bochart remarks, that the word Pharaoh signifies a crocodile in the Arabick tongue. Among the ancients it was a symbol of Egypt, and appears so in Roman coins. W. Louth, Michaelis. — that lieth in the midst of his rivers.] Memphis is thought to have been the residence of the ancient kings of Egypt. There were large lakes to the north and west of Memphis, which made the strength of the place surprising; and Dr. Pococke saw some near Aletrahenny, which he supposes were these very lakes. Nothing then could be more natural than these words of Ezekiel. Harmer. The expression however is to be understood figuratively: and, as Pharaoh is intended by the "great dragon," so the power, riches, and forces of his kingdom are denoted by "his rivers:" as it follows, "My river is mine own," that is, all the strength and glory of Egypt are mine. Poole. — I have made it for myself.] This vaunting language agrees with what Herodotus relates of Pharaohhophra, (see Jer. xlv. 30, 1 or Apries. This is said to have been the persuasion of Apries, that no God was 4. But I will put hooks in thy jaws, &c.] But I will put the hooks of the king of Babylon into thy jaws, and will drag thee out of those watery forts of thine to the dry land; and for thy princes and people, which are as the lesser sort of fishes, they also, as sticking to thy scales, shall be plucked out with thee. Bp. Hall. This prophecy may also relate to the unsuccessful expedition of Apries against the Cyrenians. W. Louth. To the inutiny of his own people, and to his defeat by Amasis. Abp. Newcome. 5. — thrown into the wilderness.] This seems to be a plainer allusion to the heavy loss which Apries and his Egyptian army sustained amongst the deserts of Libya and Cyrene. Apries did not perish there, he was strangled afterwards in his palace. Abp. Newcome, W. Louth. Thrown upon the shore. Calmet. 6. — a staff of reed] A deceitful and untrusty stay to the house of Israel. Canes or reeds abounded on the banks of the Nile. Abp. Newcome, W. Louth. 7. When they took hold of thee by thy hand, thou didst break, and rend all their shoulder:] Or their arm. The sharp fragment pierced the arm that leaned on it. The king, who was Zedekish's confederate, came with a great army to raise the siege of Jerusalem; but durst not venture a battle with the Chaldeans, and in a little time returned into his own country, deserting Zedekish, whom he had engaged to rebel against Nebuchadnezzar; whereby they became the occasion of his own and his people's ruin, chap. xvii. 15; Jer. xxxvii. 5. 7. W. Louth. — and madest all their loins to be at a stand.] Or, "and didst strain all their loins." Abp. Newcome. 8. — of them that are slain in the midst of the seas. ] And thou, that hast fondly imagined thyself a god, shall die the death of thine ordinary vassals, notwithstanding thy strong forts and bulwarks of the sea. Bp. Hall. 8. — a sword] This may be understood of Nebuchadnezzar, who, taking advantage of Amasis' revolt, overran that country, and made a prey of the whole kingdom. W. Louth. Before CHRIST 589. of the field. b 2 Kings 18. 21. Isa. 36. 6. 9. Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, I am God? ] A keen taunt or sarcasm. What will become of thy divinity then? Wilt thou then dream of immortality and almighty power, when thine enemy is killing thee? Appear thou to thyself and others to be a mortal, weak, conquered man, who dieth a sacrifice to the conqueror's pride and cruelty. Poole. 10. — of the uncircumcised] Circumcision being the rite which distinguished God's people from the heathen, "uncircumcised" is equivalent in sense to "wicked or profane." W. Lowth. So the Greeks gave other nations the contemptuous name of "Barbarians;" see 1 Sam. xvii. 36. Abp. Newcome. that slayeth thee, I am God? but thou shalt be a man, and no God, in the hand of him that || slayeth thee. 12. — Thou sealest up the sum, &c. ] In thine own opinion thou art the perfect pattern of wisdom and all other excellencies. The expression is taken from vessels and other repositories, which when full were sealed in order to preserve their contents. See Deut. xxxii. 32; Job xiv. 17. W. Lowth. 13. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God: ] Thou aboundest in all delicacies, as if thou hadst lived in paradise. Bp. Hall. This expression, as well as the whole context, alludes to the complete happiness which Adam enjoyed in paradise before his apostasy and fearful fall. W. Lowth. — every precious stone was thy covering. ] In the canopy of thy throne; or, thy garments have been adorned with them. Abp. Newcome. — the workmanship of thy tabrets — was prepared in thee] The Prophet here notices the enjoyments of the Tyrians, their musick and songs, on instruments of the most exquisite workmanship: with allusion probably either to those solemnities, with which the birth of princes is celebrated, or to those which accompany the coronation of a king, and his investiture with the royal dignity. Poole. 14. Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth: ] The particle of similitude "like" is understood; the two cherubim of beaten gold were part of the ark, and therefore anointed, Exod. xxv. 18. 21; xx. 26; the two cherubim covered the mercy seat with their wings. In this lamentation, wisdom, beauty, magnificence, splendour, and perfection are attributed to the king of Tyre; he likewise bore an exalted and sacred office: on these accounts he is compared to one of the angelick orders. Abp. Newcome. — thou wast upon the holy mountain of God: ] The image of the cherub is pursued; such was thy eminent A lamentation of his great glory. The judgment of Zidon. Before CHRIST 588. 16. By the multitude of thy merchandise &c.] By the confluence of much people upon the occasions of thy merchandise, and the oppressive bargains that are used therein, thou art full of fraud and violence, and art thereupon grown exceedingly sinful; therefore will I cast thee out from those vainly pretended rights which thou claimest in the temple of God: I will destroy thee, O thou false cherub, from the ark whose covering thou wouldest resemble, and strike thee down from those clouds where thou affectest to walk among the fiery meteors. Bp. Hall. 17. — by reason of thy brightness:] That height of glory to which I had advanced thee has perverted thy judgment, and made thee abuse thy wisdom to craft and deceit. W. Louth. — I will lay thee before kings.] I will make thee a spectacle and a warning or object of contempt to other princes. W. Louth, Poole. 18. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries] By the multi- 21. — against Zidon,] Zidon was the mother city of Tyre; and possessed for a long time the empire of Phenicia and of the sea. Afterwards Tyre became more powerful than the mother country, and obtained the sovereignty, both of Zidon and the other cities of Phenicia. We learn from Josephus, that Zidon revolted from Tyre, and submitted herself to Shalmaneser. They were however generally partakers of the same fate in prosperity and adversity, and the destruction of Zidon followed close upon that of Tyre. Calmet, W. Louth. 24. And there shall be no more a pricking brier unto the house of Israel, &c.] I will put an end to the sorrows of my Church; these heathens shall no more gall and grieve them; neither shall the nations round about insult upon their miseries, and trample upon them. Bp. Hall. 25. — When I shall have gathered &c.] These expressions refer to the times of the Gospel, and are to be understood in a spiritual sense. Junius. Or if we follow the literal sense of the words, it is a plain prophecy, either of the comparative safety and happiness which the Jews enjoyed after the seventy years' captivity; (Poole,) or, of the general restoration of the Jews, and their future return into their own land; as will appear by comparing the words with the parallel texts of this Prophet, namely, chap. xi. 17; xx. 38. 41; xxxiv. 13; xxxvi. 24; xxxvii. 12. 14. 21. 25; xxxix. 27. Compare Isa. lxv. 9, 10; Jer. xxx. 18; xxxii. 41; in which pre- Before CHRIST 588. The judgment of Pharaoh for his treachery to Israel. Before CHRIST 588. — the opening of the mouth] When thy prophecies are made good by the event, this shall add a new authority to what thou speakest. W. Lowth. Chap. XXX. ver. 2. — howl ye.] The Egyptians are addressed. W. Lowth. — Woe worth the day! [To worth," or "worth," is a Saxon verb, signifying to be. It is now only retained in "woe worth," that is, woe be, a denunciation, or exclamation of sorrow. Dr. Johnson. Unhappy be! or, Woe be to! Tyrwhitt. 3. — the day is near.] The day when the Lord will take vengeance of the heathen, who have oppressed his people. Bp. Hall. 5. — Ethiopia, and Libya, and Lydia.] The names in the Hebrew are "Cush, Phut, and Lud," who are mentioned together as the Egyptian allies, Jer. xlv. 9. Cush probably signifies Ethiopia here, (see chap. xxix. 10,) as being joined with Phut and Lud, who were people of Africa. See the note on chap. xxvii. 10. W. Lowth. — all the mingled people.] See the note on Jer. xxv. 20. — and Chub.] In Marcotis, an Egyptian province, according to Ptolemy. They are called Cubu. W. Lowth, Grotius. — and the men of the land that is in league.] The Septuagint translates it, "the men of my league or covenant;" that is, the Jews who took refuge in Egypt after the murder of Gedaliah. Abp. Newcome, W. Lowth. 6. — They also that uphold Egypt] Either the princes, 10.—from the tower of Syene even unto the border of Ethiopia.] From the south borders of Egypt unto the north, shall the land be desolate. Bp. Hall. Others prefer the translation, "from Migdol to Syene even unto the border of Ethiopia." Compare chap. xxx. 5. 9. Migdol, or Magdolus, was a town near the Red sea, as appears from Exod. xiv. 2; Numb. xxxiii. 7. It lay therefore towards the north, at the entrance of Egypt from Palestine. And Syene was to the south of Egypt, under the tropick of Cancer, and bordering upon African Ethiopia. Dean Prideaux, W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. 11.—neither shall it be inhabited forty years.] After the total defeat of Apries by the Cyrenians, in which so many Egyptians fell, that the whole nation was enraged against their king, a civil war with Amasts followed; after that a conquest and a desolation of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar, and another conquest of it by Cyrus. We learn from this passage, during what period of years Egypt was laid waste, and in a manner deserted. Abp. Newcome, W. Lowth. Amasts reigned forty-four years according to Herodotus. The forty years of desolation must have ended in the time of Cyrus, who probably permitted the Egyptian captives to return. Calmet. 12.—I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations.] Some of them shall flee for refuge into foreign countries, and some shall be carried captive by the Babylonians. Compare Jer. xlvi. 19. W. Lowth. We cannot prove from heathen authors that this desolation of the country continued exactly forty years, though it is likely enough that this, as well as the other conquered countries, did not shake off the Babylonian yoke till the time of Cyrus: but we are assured by Berossus, that Nebuchadnezzar took several captives in Egypt, and carried them to Babylon; and from Megasthenes we learn, that he transplanted and settled others in Pontus. So true it is that they were "scattered among the nations, and dispersed through the countries;" and might, upon the dissolution of the Babylonian empire, return to their native country. Bp. Newton. 14.—into the land of Pathros.] That part of Egypt which is called Thebais, as Bochart proves by several arguments. W. Lowth. 15. It shall be the basest of the kingdoms;] And, as it follows in the next chapter, "there shall be no more a prince of the land of Egypt," ver. 13. It is now a great deal above two thousand years since this prophecy was first delivered: and what likelihood or appearance was there, that the Egyptians should for so many ages bow under a foreign yoke, and never in all that time be able to recover their liberties, and have a prince of their own to reign over them? Bp. Newton. In Egypt the human mind had made some of its earliest and most auspicious efforts. It was long the general opinion, that there the laws of society had been discovered, and the fountains of science opened. Unquestionably that ingenious people were very early distinguished by an ardent spirit of enterprise, and a peculiar happiness of invention. The stupendous monuments of art, which lie scattered over the banks of the Nile, attest the vastness of their designs, and the extent of their power. The earliest professors of literature, and the first founders of civil polity, in Europe, and in the more western provinces of Asia, travelled into Egypt, and there acquired a knowledge of the fundamental principles of science and government. Egypt was possessed likewise of natural advantages, which could seldom fail. Its situation was singularly calculated to defend it against the attacks of foreign invaders; whilst its uncommon fruitfulness promised to secure the country, which it enriched, from poverty, baseness, and subjection. Yet after a long course of grandeur, and in contradiction to its natural advantages, Ezekiel pronounced that "the kingdom should be the basest of kingdoms," and that "there should be no more a prince of the land of Egypt." Richards. As is the prophecy, so is the event. For not long afterwards Egypt was conquered by the Babylonians; and after the Babylonians, by the Persians; and after the Persians, it became subject to the Macedonians; and after the Macedonians, to the Romans; and after the Romans, to the Saracens; and then to the Mameluckes; and is now a province of the Ottoman empire. Bp. Newton. 16.—which bringeth their iniquity to remembrance.] Causing God to punish the iniquity of his people. Abp. Newcome. God never forgets; but when He visits, punishes, and judges a nation for their sin, then their sin is said to come up into remembrance. Poole. Israel shall be restored. The desolation of Egypt Before CHRIST about 589. 573. after them: but they shall know that I am the Lord God. 17. — in the seven and twentieth year.] See the note on ver. 1. 18. — to serve a great service] The siege lasted thirteen years. The heads of the soldiers were made bald by the helmet, by disease, and by labour; and their shoulders galled by carrying earth to raise mounts and fortifications against it. W. Lowth, Bp. Hall — yet had he no wages, nor his army.] This was literally true: for when the Tyrians saw that the works for carrying on the siege were perfected, and the foundations of the walls were shaken by the battering of the rains, whatsoever precious things in gold, silver, clothes, and various kinds of furniture, the nobility had, they put them on board their ships, and carried them to the islands; so that the city being taken, Nebuchadnezzar found nothing worthy of his labour. Bp. Newton. 20. — because they wrought for me.] The destruction of cities and countries is a work of God's providence, for the effecting of which He makes use of kings and princes as his instruments. Upon this account He calls Nebuchadnezzar his servant, Jer. xxv. 9, because "he wrought for him," as it is here expressed; that is, executed his judgments upon Tyre, and the other cities and countries which God delivered into his hand. W. Lowth. 21. — the horn of the house of Israel to bud forth.] The enlargement of Jehoiakim may be referred to. See no more a prince] A natural prince of the Egyptian race to rule over it. It shall be subject to foreigners. Abp. Secker. See the note on chap. xxix. 15. — little rivers] Small artificial channels, through which water was distributed in Eastern gardens. According to St. Jerome, the rivers represent the tributary kings of Assyria, and the little rivers its princes and governors, to whom the royal authority was communicated. Calmet. 6. All the fowls of heaven made their nests in his boughs.] Representing the several nations which applied to the Assyrians for protection and safety, chap. xvii. 23; Dan. iv. 12. W. Lowth. 8. — a fire in Egypt.] God's judgments are often compared to fire. W. Lowth. 8. The cedars in the garden of God could not hide him: &c.] See Ps. lxxx. 10. Such fair cedars as might be supposed to grow in Paradise. W. Lowth. Implying, that the greatest princes in the most flourishing kingdoms of the world could not stand in comparison with the Assyrian monarch; but all of them were forced to yield to him as more powerful and glorious than themselves. Bp. Holt. 9. — in ships.] Up the Nile to Ethiopia, it being a more secure way of conveying intelligence in a time of general commotion. Abp. Newcome. St. Jerome informs us, that vessels navigated the Nile as far as the cataracts at Syene, on the borders of Ethiopia. Calmet. — in the day of Egypt.] The Egyptians and Ethiopians being confederates, the news of the conquest of Egypt shall sensibly affect them. W. Lowth. 9. — all the trees of Eden,—envied him.] "All the kings of the East envied him his greatness," as the Chaldee Paraphrase expresseth the sense. W. Lowth. 11. — the terrible of the nations.] See chap. xxviii. 7. 11. — the mighty one of the heathen;] Or, "of the Before CHRIST 572. a Dan. 4. 12. b Gen. 2. 8. 12. — I will make the rivers dry.] The fertility and prosperity of Egypt depended entirely upon the overflowing of the Nile. Abp. Newcome. 13. — out of Noph.] Noph, or Memphis, was one of the principal cities of Egypt, a seat of their kings, where their sepulchres stood. On this account it is frequently mentioned in Scripture. See Isa. xix. 13; Jer. ii. 16; xliv. 1. In Hosea it is called "Moph." (chap. ix. 6,) which comes near in sound to Memphis. W. Lowth. Cairo is called to this day "Menoph." Abp. Newcome. 14. — Pathros] See chap. xxix. 14, and note. — in Zoan,] Or Tanis, one of the ancient cities of Egypt, Numb. xiii. 22; Ps. lxxviii. 12. 43. W. Lowth, Dr. Wells. — No.] Diospolis, or Thebes. Bochart. It was the capital of Upper Egypt. Calmet. 18. — Tehaphuehes. Elsewhere written Tahpanhes; it is supposed to be the same place which was afterwards called Daphne Pelusiaca. Bp. Hall, W. Lowth. See the notes on Isa. xxx. 4; Jer. ii. 16. — the yokes] The yokes imposed by the Egyptians. W. Lowth. 22. — and will break his arms, the strong, and that which was broken; &c.] The king of Babylon had before dispossessed the king of Egypt of all his new conquests, from the river of Egypt to the river Euphrates, 2 Kings xxiv. 7. So that this part of his strength was already taken away, never to be recovered; and now God threatens to destroy the remainder of his power, the kingdom of Egypt itself. W. Lowth. Before CHRIST 572. Pelusium. Heliopolis. Pubatium. : Or. restrained. 558. A relation unto Pharaoh, of the glory of Assyria, Before CHRIST 572. 24. And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon.] The same promise God afterwards made to Cyrus, Isa. xlv. 1. W. Lowth. Chap. XXXI. ver. 2. — Whom art thou like] Thou pridest thyself as if there never was any prince or king that could compare with thee. W. Lowth. 3. Behold, the Assyrian The Assyrian empire, which was destroyed by Nabopolassar king of Babylon. The fitness and beauty of this fine image may be learnt from the account of the cedars of Libanus, given by different authors. See note at 1 Kings v. 6. The prophetic and poetical writers among the Jews make use of the cedar of Lebanon in a figurative sense to express something proud, of high stature and magnificence, as in this place. This beautiful tree, remarkable for its loftiness, and in the most flourishing condition, but afterwards cut down and deserted, gives us a lively painting of the glory and the catastrophe of the Abyssinian monarch. The manner, in which the Prophet has embellished his description, is full of propriety and elegance, and the colouring is such as fills the mind with the greatest delight. Bp. Lowth. 4. The waters made him great. As trees flourish by a river side, (compare chap. xvii. 5.) so the traffick of the several branches of the river Tigris, upon which her rivers running round about his plants, and sent out her || little rivers unto all the trees of the field. 13. Upon his ruin &c.] As the birds sit upon the boughs of a tree cut down, and the beasts browse upon its branches, so his dominions shall be a prey to the conquerors; or his armies that are slain shall become meat to the birds and beasts. W. Lowth. 14. To the end &c.] To the end that none of the proud princes of the earth should hereafter dare to exalt themselves in the overweening confidence of their own strength and glory. Bp. Hall. — all that drink water: A figurative expression for trees, which derive so much nourishment from water. Abp. Newcome. for they are all delivered unto death, Whatever distinction there is between them and the inferior sort, death shall make them all equal, Ps. lxxvii. 7. This is more particularly intimated to Egypt, and to those other countries against which God had denounced his judgments: the same fate is here allotted to them which the Assyrian monarch had undergone. W. Lowth. 15. In the day when he went down to the grave This and the following verse form a noble and elegant description of that consternation which seized the king of Assyria's allies at the suddenness of his downfall; the same metaphor being still pursued. W. Lowth. Vol. II. I covered the deep for him.] I caused the deep to mourn; or, I caused it to cover itself in token of grief. Grotius. The deep that nourished this fair tree (ver. 4.) is described as mourning at his downfall. W. Lowth. 16. — when I cast him down to hell (or the grave) with them that descend into the pit: See chap. xxxii. 18. 21; Isa. xiv. 15. — all the trees of Eden, — shall be comforted! The deceased princes, his allies and tributaries, described here as so many stately trees and cedars, shall feel some mitigation of their calamity, in considering, that this king, so mighty, and so powerful, is brought like themselves to the nether parts of the earth; or, that he is become their equal in the pit, in the grave, in the place of darkness, from which all distinctions of quality and condition are entirely banished. Colnet, W. Lowth. 17. — his arm, His auxiliaries: the nations that composed his strength, and lived under his protection. W. Lowth. 18. To whom art thou thus like &c.] Oh Pharaoh! thou that art thou like to the Assyrian amongst all the kings of the earth in glory and magnificence, thou shalt also be like him in thy ruin; thou with the other princes of the world shalt be brought down into the grave, and shalt be destroyed in the midst of thy fellow heathen. Bp. Hall. The latter part of ver. 2 is here resumed, and the application is directly made to Egypt. Abp. Newcome. Chap. XXXII. ver. 2. — take up a lamentation] To 2 M A lamentation for the fearful fall of Egypt. Before CHRIST 587. a Chap. 12. 13. &17. 20. land of thy swimming. extinguish. b Isa. 13. 10. Joel 2. 31 &3. 15. Matt. 24. 29. of the light in heaven. dark provoke to anger, or, good. the preceding funeral panegyrick over Assyria, the fate of which was past, Ezekiel prophetically subjoins a similar panegyrick over Egypt, though its fate was still future; making plainly here a happy variation in the figure. In the former case past events are brought down and represented as now present before our eyes; whereas, on the contrary, by this prophetic figure, future events are anticipated, and represented as already past. Abp. Newcome. — thou art as a whale] By the original word we may fitly understand a crocodile, as hath been observed upon chap. xxix. 3, and the description that follows of this creature agrees very well to a crocodile, but cannot be applied to a whale. W. Lowth. — and thou camest forth with thy rivers, &c.] Thou didst raise mighty armies, and lead them out against thy neighbours; see chap. xxx. 3, and the note there. By "the waters" in the next clause are intended the neighbouring people, kings, and kingdoms, whose peace and enjoyments were disturbed by the invasion of the Egyptian monarch. Poole. 2. — a man of their coasts.] From among them. W. Lowth. Out of their borders: the proper place to station watchmen. Abp. Newcome. 3. — when he seeth the sword] When he spieth the enemy. W. Lowth. 5. And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, &c.] Implying that the vast bulk of thine armies, when they are slain, shall fill both mountains and valleys. See chap. xxxi. 12. W. Lowth. — with thy height.] With thy projection, or thy carcase. Capellus. 5. — But he that taketh warning] Shall save his soul from the danger that threatens it: in like manner he that takes warning by the Prophet's admonition, shall preserve himself from the judgment threatened against sinners. W. Lowth. 7, 8. — I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; &c.] Compare this sublime passage with chap. xxxi. 15. say unto him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a || whale in the seas: and thou camest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers. 7—9. — I have set thee a watchman &c.] See chap. iii. 17—19. Before CHRIST 587. land when I bring a sword upon her. that hearing heareth. a Chap. 5. 17, &c. 9. — when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations,] The nations shall be affrighted and amassed when I shall bring unto them both the rumour and the expectation of thy destruction. Bp. Hall. 13. — from beside the great waters;] The cattle that used to feed upon the fertile meadows beside the hill shall be destroyed or driven away. Abp. Newcome. — trouble them] The country shall be so deserted, that the waters of the river shall not be fouled by man or beast. Abp. Newcome. — any more,] During the forty years of desolation, chap. xxix. 11. 14. Then will I make their waters deep, and cause their rivers to run like oil, &c.] The Prophet in the second verse compared the disturbances the Egyptians gave their neighbours to the troubling and fouling of waters; in allusion to which metaphor he saith here, that when Egypt is made desolate, and the number of men and beasts diminished by their wars and confusions, then their neighbours will enjoy such quietness as a river does, that smoothly glides along, and never hath its streams fouled or disturbed. W. Lowth. A lamentation for the fearful fall of Egypt. Before CHRIST about 587. 16. — the daughters of the nations] That is, the people of the neighbouring countries: so the "daughter of Zion" and "of Babylon" signifies the inhabitants of those cities. The expression alludes to the mourning women, whose profession it was to lament at funerals. W. Lowth. 17. — in the fifteenth day of the month.] Probably of the twelfth month: see ver. 1. Calmet, W. Lowth. 18. Son of man, wail for the multitude &c.] This prophetick ode is a master-piece in that species of writing, which is appropriated to the exciting of terror. Bp. Lowth. — and cast them down, &c.] The Prophets are said to do what they foretel: see chap. xliii. 3; Jer. i. 10. Abp. Secker. — into the pit.] An imitation may be observed here of that sublime chapter, the 14th of Isaiah. But our Prophet has so conducted it in his own manner, that fertility of genius, copiousness of diction, and variety of expression, are not less to be admired in the one than in the other. Dathius. Bp. Lowth remarks, that Ezekiel has here described the same scene, with all the same circumstances, as Isaiah: affording in it a singular example of the sublime and terrible, for which the former Prophet is so peculiarly distinguished. Abp. Newcome. 19. — go down, and be thou laid with the uncircumcised.] Strong and goodly as thou art, go down into the dust, and be laid together with thy godless and lewd companions of the profane heathen. Bp. Hall. See chap. xxviii. 10, and the notes there. 20. — draw her] Drag her carcase to the sepulchre. The words are addressed to the Babylonians. Abp. Newcome, W. Lowth. 21. The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him:] "Hell" signifies here the state of the dead, where the deceased tyrants with their subjects are represented as coming to meet the king of Egypt with his auxiliaries (see chap. xxx. 8,) upon their arrival at the same place. Compare chap. xxvi. 16, 17; Isa. xiv. 9, &c. W. Lowth, Bp. Hall. — they are gone down, &c.] These warriours, famous in their time for their exploits, have undergone the same fate with other men of blood, and are gone down to the grave by violent deaths. W. Lowth. 22. Asshur is there and all her company: The Assyrians, both king and people, whose destruction is represented in the foregoing chapter. W. Lowth. 23. Whose graves are set in the sides of the pit, &c.] See chap. xxvi. 20; Isa. xiv. 15. The graves of his companies and complices are set in the sides of the burial-place round about the grave of Asshur, which lies in the midst of his attendants: all of them slain, &c. Bp. Hall. — in the sides of the pit.] Upon the hill of offence near Jerusalem, the sepulchres exhibit a series of subterranean chambers, hewn with marvellous art, each containing one or many repositories for the dead, like cisterns carved in the rock upon the sides of those chambers. Dr. E. D. Clarke. 24. There is Elam] Conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, Jer. xlix. 34. W. Lowth. 25. — a bed] The cell which receives the sarcophagus is called "the bed." Bp. Lowth. 26. — Meshech, Tubal.] See chap. xxvii. 13, and note. The Scythians may be comprehended, who anciently governed Asia. This is no other than the well-known 27. And they shall not lie with the mighty &c.] They shall not lie among those heathen heroes who died a natural death, and are laid in their graves with pomp and magnificence; see Isa. xiv. 18, 19. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. — and they have laid their swords under their heads.] It has been the custom of all ages to adorn the sepulchres of heroes with their swords and other trophies of war. W. Lowth. "In Mingrelia they all sleep with their swords under their heads, and their other arms by their sides; and they bury them in the same manner, their arms being placed in the same position." This is the account of Sir John Chardin; and the extract becomes more interesting and important, when it is considered, that according to Bochart and other learned men, Meshech and Tubal mean Mingrelia and the country thereabout. Harmer. 29. — Edom, her kings, and all her princes.] Of whose destruction Ezekiel prophesied, chap. xxv. 12. W. Lowth. 30. — the princes of the north.] By "the princes of the north" may be understood the Tyrians and their # CHAP. XXXIII. 31. — and shall be comforted] As it affords some relief to calamitous persons to see others in the same condition with themselves, chap. xxxi. 16. W. Lowth. Chap. XXXIII. ver. 1. Again the word of the Lord &c.] It is plain that Ezekiel uttered what is contained in this chapter to ver. 20, before Jerusalem was taken by the Babylonians: but how long before is uncertain. Abp. Newcome. — Abraham was one, &c.] If Abraham, being but one, had this land given to him for an inheritance; how much more may we, his seed, to whom it is deduced, being many, challenge an interest in it? Bp. Hall. The title of "one" is elsewhere given to Abraham, as being the original and head of the Jewish nation; Isa. li. 2; Mal. ii. 15; Heb. xi. 12. W. Lowth. — with their mouth they shew much love.] According to the marginal reading the sense is, that they turned the Prophet's words into jest; but by comparing this with the following verse, we may rather understand the phrase in this sense, that they were delighted with the Prophet's harmonious voice, or attractive eloquence, but would not make the proper use of what he said for correcting their evil manners. W. Lowth. — but their heart goeth after their covetousness.] Their worldly desires of whatever sort. Abp. Secker. 10. — If our transgressions — be upon us, and we pine away &c.] If according to thy prophecies God has determined to reckon with us for our sins, and to bring judgment upon us, to what purpose shall our conversion be? and how shall we live, though we do amend? Bp. Hall. They are the words of persons despairing of God's mercy, and from thence taking occasion to go on in their sins. See a like instance Jer. ii. 25. W. Lowth. 11. — As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; &c.] We have here one of the most express declarations to be found in the whole Scripture, of the infinite mercy of God. God swears by Himself, that He would not by any means the death of the wicked; that He desires nothing but their conversion and life: and receives them graciously as soon as they return to Him. The consideration of God's great mercy should fill sinners with confidence, and engage them to repent, and thereby prevent their ruin. Ostervald. These are most comfortable words: for now we may be sure, that when we will leave our sins and wickedness, and turn unto Him with all our hearts earnestly, then He will turn Himself unto us, and will shew Himself a loving Father. And to the intent we should believe this, He sweareth an oath: we ought to believe God without an oath, yet He sweareth, to make us more sure. Bp. Latimer. God declares Himself to bear an universal good-will to mankind; that He doth earnestly desire the welfare of all men; and is displeased with the ruin of any man. This He affirms; and, for the confirmation of our faith, and our consolation therein, He swears it: "As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live." See also Isa. v. 4; Hos. xiii. 9; Isa. lxv. 2; Rom. x. 21; Jer. vii. 31; Prov. i. 24. 29; Isa. lxv. 12; lxvi. 4; i. 16; Jer. vi. 10; Zech. vii. 11, 12. Which passages, and many others of the like importance that occur, do imply the large extent of God's merciful intentions, and the competency of the means, which God affords for the salvation of men; that He wants no affection or inclination to save them; that He neglects no means proper for effecting it; that He draws them into the way leading thither by serious and earnest invitation, directs them by needful light and instruction, excites them by powerful arguments and persuasions; and, as St. Ambrose speaketh, that "God hath shewed to all, that, what was in Him, he did will to deliver or save all men." Whence He may truly and properly be called the Benefactor and Saviour even of those, who by their wilful malice or neglect do not obtain salvation. Dr. Isaac Barrow. 12, 13. — The righteousness of the righteous &c.] See chap. xviii. 26, 27, and note. 13. — if he trust to his own righteousness,] If he rely upon the good works that he hath done, and think the worth of them will overbalance his evil deeds. This seems to be the persuasion of the latter Jews, who lay this down for a certain rule in their Mishna, that all Israel hath a share in the world to come. The Mahometans think the same respecting themselves. Relaud, W. Lowth. 14. — when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; &c.] In the whole course of Scripture, God's threatenings, and so his promises too, have ever a condition annexed to them in God's purpose: which though it be not ever, indeed but seldom, expressed, yet is it ever included, and so to be understood. All God's promises, how absolutely soever expressed, are made on condition of obedience; and all his threatenings, how absolutely soever expressed, on condition of impenitence. This is plain from the passage before us; where Almighty God clearly teaches us, that we ought so to conceive of all his threatenings, be they never so peremptorily set down, (as what more peremptory than this, "Thou shalt surely die?") as that He may reserve to Himself a power of revocation, in case the parties threatened repent. Bp. Sanderson. 15. — give again that he had robbed,] The law was The hypocrisy of the Jews reproved Before CHRIST 587. in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. 25. — Ye eat with the blood.] Ye are not the sons of faithful Abraham: your works are contrary to his; ye eat the blood together with the flesh, which I have forbidden; ye are guilty both of idolatry and murder; and shall ye challenge to possess the land in the right of Abraham? Bp. Hall. 26. — ye stand upon your sword.] Ye rely upon the confidence of your own sword. Bp. Hall. 27. — shall fall by the sword, &c.] The three judgments here mentioned, together with famine, are often threatened as the last and finishing stroke of God's vengeance upon the Jewish nation; see chap. v. 12. 17; vi. 12; xiv. 21; Jer. xv. 3. W. Lowth. — in the caves. The caves here mentioned were a sort of strong holds, formed by nature in the rocks, or cut out under the tops of mountains. They were so large that men might secure themselves, their families, and their goods in them; such was the cave of "Adullam," mentioned 1 Sam. xxii. 1; 2 Sam. xxiii. 13. W. Lowth. 30. — talking against thee] Rather, "of thee:" this is in some editions the marginal and probably the right translation. Abp. Secker. — by the walls and in the doors] Both in their public places of concourse and in their private meetings. W. Lowth. 31. — as the people cometh.] As disciples flock to their teachers; so the Chaldee Paraphrase explains it. W. Lowth. — and they sit] See note on chap. viii. 1. A reproof of the shepherds. God's judgment against them. Before CHRIST 587. make loves, or jests. of loves. fore thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth † they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness. 32. And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song] They were struck with his eloquence without regarding his exhortations and admonitions. It is no unusual thing for people to listen to discourses from the ministers of God only to enjoy the satisfaction, which a well composed discourse naturally affords. Their ears are gratified, their sentiments are enlivened, agreeable emotions of various kinds are excited. So the hearer is pleased, the speaker is commended and followed; but with no thought of practising one word that he hath said. This is the turn of mind so admirably described many ages ago by the Prophet Ezekiel in this passage. But religious instruction could never be appointed to give such empty, insignificant delight as this: nor doth it in the least attain its proper end, unless it influences men to forget the preacher, and think of themselves: unless it raises in them, not a superficial complacency, or an idle admiration, but an awful and a durable solicitude about their eternal welfare. Abp. Secker. 33. And when this cometh to pass,] This matter, this event, the destruction of Jerusalem. Abp. Newcome. — (lo, it will come,)] Or rather, "lo, it is come," chap. vii. 2. 6. 10; the verb being in the present tense. When you see my prophecies concerning the destruction of Jerusalem actually brought to pass, as it appears they are at this time; see ver. 21; then you will be convinced of the truth of my mission, and of your own inexcusable crime in despising my predictions; see chap. xxiv. 27. W. Lowth. Chap. XXXIV. ver. 1. — came unto me,] It is pro- GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? 2. — shepherds] The king, his counsellors, and the heads of the people. Michaelis. The word "shepherd" comprehends governours both civil and ecclesiastical; compare Isa. lvi. 11; Jer. ii. 8; xxiii. 1. W. Lowth. — that do feed themselves!] That regard their own profit and advantages, not the good of the people committed to their charge. W. Lowth. 3. Ye eat the fat,] Or the milk; milk and fat being expressed by the same word in Hebrew. W. Lowth. — ye kill them that are fed:] The wealthy and substantial, to enrich yourselves. W. Lowth. 4. The diseased have ye not strengthened,] Those particular offices which belong to your charge, as comforting the weak, healing the sick, binding up the broken-hearted, reclaiming and reducing those that have erred, ye have not accordingly done; but rather have tyrannously and cruelly exercised an imperious authority over them. By. Hall. The same allegory holds, ver. 5—10. Jesus Christ made the same reproach to the Scribes and Pharisees. Matt. xxiii. 4; see also 1 Pet. v. 2, 3. Calmet. 5. — no shepherd:] None in effect; none deserving the name. Abp. Newcome. — meat to all the beasts of the field,] That is, to their enemies, who as so many beasts of prey have spoiled and devoured them; compare Jer. xii. 9; Isa. lvi. 9. W. Lowth. Before CHRIST 587. b 1 Pet. 5. 3. Or, without a shepherd: and so ver. 6. God's providence for his flock. Before CHRIST 587. 23. — one shepherd over them, — even my servant David;] Jesus Christ the true Shepherd, to whom the title of David is given by the Prophets, and attributed by Himself in the Gospel, and who has fulfilled all the duties, after having faithfully described all the characters of the office. The Scriptures call this Shepherd David, because He was born of David after the flesh, and possessed in reality, and eminently, all those qualities, which the Scriptures give to David, under the figure of the Messiah. Calmet, Bp. Hall. — he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd.] This prophecy was remarkably fulfilled, when Christ by the preaching of the Gospel "gathered in one the children of God, that were scattered abroad," John xi. 52; Ephes. i. 10; among whom were many "of the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But it will receive a further completion at the general conversion of the Jews, when the time will come, that they shall say, "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord," Matt. xxiii. 39; and this signal event will usher in, or complete the fulness of the Gentiles; see Rom. xi. 12. 15. 25. 32. W. Lowth. 24. — and my servant David a prince among them;] The Messiah; the true heir and successor of David. Bp. Hall. 25. — the evil beasts to cease] And I will keep them from those spiritual dangers that may be hurtful to them; see ver. 8 of this chapter. Calmet. The words may be meant of freedom from persecution by infidels and strangers. W. Lowth. 26 And I will make them &c. — a blessing;] I will beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. 29. And I will raise up for them a plant of renown.] I will make them a glorious plant, being fast rooted in that promised Messiah, and being incorporated in Him; and they shall no more be consumed with a spiritual famine, nor be trampled upon by the enemies of my Church. Bp. Hall. The Messiah is often described under the name of "the Branch," and "the Rod," or shoot, growing out of the stem of Jesse: see Isa. iv. 2; xi. 1; Jer. xxiii. 5; Zech. iii. 8; vi. 12. W. Lowth. 31. And ye my flock, &c.] These words at the conclusion of the chapter explain the metaphor, which runs through the whole; that what was said of a flock and its shepherds, is to be understood of men and their governors, and especially of God's people, whom He takes care of, as a shepherd does of his flock, chap. xxxvi. 38. W. Lowth. Chap. XXXV. ver. 2. — mount Seir.] Idumea; see Deut. ii. 5, where God says, that He has "given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession." The Prophet goes on to shew, that the same reason which will operate in favour of the Jews, will not operate in favour of the heathen, especially not in favour of the Edomites, for they shewed no mercy, and therefore deserved to receive none; and because they had a perpetual hatred, were to be made a perpetual desolation. Abp. Newcome. The judgment of mount Seir for their hatred of Israel. Before CHRIST 587. of old. out the children. hands. 2. — even the ancient high places are our's in possession.] The Edomites have made their boasts, (chap. xxxv. 10,) that they should become masters of the mountainous parts of Judea, where the ancient fortresses were placed, which commanded all the rest of the country; see Deut. xxxii. 13. W. Lowth. Before CHRIST 587. devour. magnified. 587. a Chap. 6. 2. Because for because. 9. I will make thee perpetual desolations, &c.] See chap. xxv. 13; Jer. xlix. 17, 18. 10. Because thou hast said, These two nations &c.] These two nations, Israel and Judah, and their countries, wasted by the Assyrian and Babylonian, shall be mine, and we will possess it; whereas, however this land is abused, it is the Lord's peculiar, and therefore out of thy reach, and free from any challenge of thine. Bp. Hall, Abp. Newcome. 11. — I will make myself known among them, when I have judged thee.] I will make my people see that I spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying, They are laid desolate, they are given us † to consume. 14. — When the whole earth rejoiceth.] After the return from the captivity, when all thy neighbours, conquered by the king of Babylon, shall be restored in peace and prosperity, thou shalt be reduced to distress and desolation. Calmet. The Edomites never recovered their country after their expulsion from it by the Nabatheans, who drove them out of their ancient habitations in the time of the Babylonish captivity; they then settled themselves in the southern part of Judea, where they were afterwards conquered by Hyrcanus, and obliged to embrace the Jewish religion, and so became incorporated with that nation. Dean Prideaux. Chap. XXXVI. ver. 1. — prophesy unto the mountains of Israel.] This prophesy is the sequel of that contained in the last chapter. Calmet. 3. — the residue] The nations which remained unconquered by the Babylonians. Abp. Newcome. — and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers.] Your name is scornfully taken up in the lips of your busy and insulting enemies, and ye are made a byword and reproach of the people. Bp. Hall. 5. — in the fire of my jealousy] In that fervent zeal and concern that I have for my own honour, which is blasphemed among the heathen; see chap. xxxv. 12, 13. W. Lowth. 6. — ye have borne the shame of the heathen:] The reproach and insult; see chap. xxxiv. 29. 7. — I have lifted up mine hand.] I have solemnly sworn; see chap. xx. 5. W. Lowth. 8. — for they are at hand to come.] They, my people Israel, are near the time of their coming from Babylon into their own land. Abp. Newcome. The most sensible interpreters seem to agree, that there are several expressions in this chapter, particularly in the latter part of it, which cannot be literally understood of any event, excepting of the reign of the Messiah, of the freedom that He has procured for his of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded: 10. — and the wastes shall be builded:] Compare ver. 33. This may likewise in some measure have been fulfilled at their return from Babylon, Isa. lviii. 12; lxi. 4. W. Lowth. 12. — bereave them of men.] By the sword, pestilence, and famine, which were God's judgments upon his people for their idolatries. Abp. Newcome. 12. — your graves.] Alluding to their being buried, as it were, in the land of their captivity. The Jews seemed as absolutely deprived of their own country, as persons committed to the grave are cut off from the land of the living. The foregoing similitude shews in a beautiful manner, that God, who could raise the dead, had power to restore them. Abp. Newcome. The Jews, in the state of their dispersion and captivity, are called the "dead Israelites" in Baruch, chap. iii. 4. And their resurrection is described as a "resurrection" by Isaiah, chap. xxvi. 19; at which time "their bones" are said to "flourish," or to be restored to their former strength and vigour, in the same Prophet, chap. lxvi. 14. In like manner St. Paul expresses their conversion by "life from the dead," Rom. xi. 15. W. Lowth. 13. — they say unto you, Thou land devourest up] The neighbouring nations observed the heavy sufferings of Israel and Judah, and accused the land of exterminating its inhabitants. Abp. Newcome. Compare Numb. xiii. 32. 16. — take thee one stick, and write upon it.] That is, one rod: the expression alludes to Numb. xvii. 2, where Moses is commanded to take twelve rods, one for each tribe, and to write the name of the tribe upon the rod. W. Lowth. — For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: When Jeroboam, at the head of his companions, withdrew from his obedience to the house of David, the tribes of Benjamin, Judah, and Levi, still adhered to the government of Rehoboam. Besides these three tribes, many Israelites from the other tribes joined themselves to the same party, as appears from 2 Chron. xi. 12—16; xv. 9; xxx. 11. 18. Hence the expression, "for Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions." Calmet. — For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all &c.] Upon Reuben's forfeiting his birthright, that privilege was conferred upon the sons of Joseph, of whom Ephraim had the precedence, 1 Chron. v. 1; Gen. xlviii. 20; which caused him to be reckoned the head of the ten tribes. Samaria, the seat of that kingdom, was likewise situated in the tribe of Ephraim, and Jeroboam their first king was an Ephraimite. Upon these accounts the name of Ephraim signifies in the Prophets the whole kingdom of Israel, as distinct from that of Judah. W. Lowth. The union of the two sticks may be supposed to signify in a more extended sense, the assembling, not only of the Jews of all the tribes, but also of the people of all nations in the Church of Christ. Calmet. 17. — their way was before me as the uncleanness &c.] Their continual practice was as foul and odious to me, as can be expressed by any legal uncleanness. Bp. Hall. 18. — for the blood] They had shed the blood of Before CHRIST 587. Or, cause to fall. Israel shall be restored. The blessings Before CHRIST 587. b Isaiah 52.5. Rom. 2. 24. the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them. 19. — which is in the hand of Ephraim.] Which is wielded as a sceptre in the hand of Ephraim, and of the other nine tribes of Israel, the companions of their chief tribe Ephraim. Abp. Newcome. — they shall be one in mine hand.] I will make them one nation, and appoint one King to rule over them, the Messiah; see ver. 22. W. Lowth. This prophecy was fulfilled very imperfectly in the persons of the Jews after the captivity, both because neither the tribe of Judah, nor the other tribes, returned entire, and because they were not governed by kings of the family of David. Calmet. 20. — they profaned my holy name.] They caused my holy name to be scorned and evil spoken of, in that it was said of these so wicked and lewd persons, Lo, these are the select people of the Lord, and those that were inhabitants of his holy land. Bp. Hall. 21. But I had pity for mine holy name.] I wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted among the heathen; see chap. xx. 9; compare Deut. ix. 5; Ps. cvi. 8. 23. — and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord. The return of the Jews from the Babylonish captivity was taken notice of by the heathens, as a signal instance of God's providence towards them, Ps. cxxvi. 2; and their general conversion will be a much more remarkable proof of my fulfilling the promises made to their fathers; so that the heathens themselves will be forced to take notice of it, chap. xxxvii. 28. W. Lowth. — when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.] When I shall glorify myself by working your deliverance, and your apparent reformation before their eyes. Bp. Hall. 22. And I will make them one nation &c.] And I will unite my Church all the world over in one: and one King, even the Messiah, whom I shall send, shall be King to them all; and they shall no more be so divided in profession, as if they were different kingdoms, ruled 25. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean:.] Allusion is here made to the purifications which were effected in the Jewish Church, by sprinkling pure water upon persons under legal pollution; these were types of baptism, and of that penitence which cleanses us from our sins, through the blood of Jesus Christ, and by the invisible aspersion of his Holy Spirit and grace. It is only therefore in the general establishment of the Church of God, that the real and perfect accomplishment of this prophecy can come to pass. St. Paul may probably allude to this text, when he exhorts the Hebrew converts "to draw near to God, having their hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and their bodies washed with pure water." Calmet, W. Lowth. 26. — the stony heart out of your flesh.] I will take away your perverse and rebellious disposition; I will give you a tenderness of heart and an aptness to be wrought upon by the motions of my Spirit. Bp. Hall. Certain it is, that the Jews gave much less occasion for reproach after their return from captivity, more particularly upon the subject of idolatry, and of those other disorders with which they had been reproached by the Prophets, than before that event took place; but their conduct even then was far from being such as to resemble that picture of perfection, of purity, of docility, and of justice, which is described here, and in other places of the Prophets. It is Christianity alone which removes the "heart of stone," and supplies "the heart of flesh." Calmet. 31. — and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight] When the Prophets foretel the general conversion of the Jews, they usually mention their detestation of their former idolatries, as a necessary preparation towards it. See Isa. i. 27; xvii. 7, 8; Jer. iii. 22, &c. W. Lowth. The resurrection of dry bones. The promises Before CHRIST about 587. up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. — and one king shall be king to them all.] The Messiah is described as King of the Jews in most of the prophecies of the Old Testament, beginning with that of Genesis, chap. xlix. 10, concerning Shiloh. From David's time He is commonly spoken of as the Person in whom the promises relating to the perpetuity of David's kingdom were to be accomplished. This was a truth unanimously owned by the Jews; see John i. 49; to which our Saviour bore testimony before Pontius Pilate, when the question being put to Him, "Art thou a king?" He made answer, "Thou sayest," (the truth,) "that I am a King." St. Paul, alluding to these words, calls them "a good confession," 1 Tim. vi. 13. The same truth Pontius Pilate himself asserted in that inscription, which by the direction of Providence he ordered to be written upon the cross; see John xix. 19: so that the chief priests impiously renounced their own avowed principles, when they told Pilate that they had no king but Cesar. W. Lowth. 23. — nor with their detestable things.] Or "abominations," as the word is elsewhere translated, and commonly applied to idols: see chap. xx. 7; 2 Kings xxiii. 13. W. Lowth. — out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein &c.] See chap. xxxvi. 20. 25. 28. 26. — and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them &c.] I will set my Church in the midst of them, which shall continue to the end of the world; and I will dwell in their hearts as in my temple for ever. Bp. Hall. If we understand "for evermore" in a limited sense, and the condition of obedience implied, the rebuilding of the temple may be in the first instance foretold. At the final restoration of the Jews, God will place his tabernacle and sanctuary among them in a larger sense. Abp. Newcome. 28. And the heathen shall know] The conversion of the Jewish nation, and their being restored to their former state of favour and acceptance with God, will be a work of Providence taken notice of by the heathens and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. 15. — out of the north parts.] See ver. 6, and note. 17. — Art thou he] Art thou not he? A sense which the particle of interrogation often imports. See the note on chap. xx. 4. W. Lowth. — of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants &c.] The enemy, here said to be foretold of old by the Prophets, is probably described under the names of such nations as were the chief enemies to the Jews in the particular times of each Prophet. To particular prophecies of this nature we may add those prophecies which speak of some great and general destruction of God's enemies before the day of judgment, or consummation of all things: such are Ps. ex. 5, 6; Isa. xxvi. 20, 21; xxxiv. 1; Jer. xxx. 7. 10; Joel iii. 9. 14; Obad. ver. 15. W. Lowth. 18. — my fury shall come up in my face.] An expression taken from human passions, which cause the blood to fly up into the face. So Isaiah (chap. xxx. 27.) describes Almighty God as "burning with anger," his lips being "full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire." W. Lowth. 19. — a great shaking] All the circumstances of an earthquake are described in this and the following verse: compare Zech. xiv. 3—5. Howbigant. VOL. II. 21. And I will call for a sword against him] I will appoint a sword to destroy him. So God is said to call for a dearth upon the land of Canaan, Ps. cv. 16. W. Lowth. 22. And I will plead against him] Or, I will plead with him: see chap. xx. 35. God pleads with men by his judgments, which are a manifest token of the vengeance due to their sins: see Isa. lxvi. 16; Jer. xxv. 31. Pestilence is joined with blood here, as it is chap. v. 17; xiv. 19; xxviii. 23. W. Lowth. — and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, &c.] Compare Rev. xx. 8, 9. It is plain that the extraordinary circumstances mentioned ver. 19—22, remain to be accomplished on the future enemies of the Jews, when God's people are reinstated in his favour. Abp. Newcome. Chap. XXXIX. ver. 2. — and will cause thee to come up from the north parts.] The words may be better translated, "after I have caused thee to come up, &c." See a like construction, chap. xxxviii. 4. W. Lowth. Ver. 1.—in the beginning of the year, in the tenth day of the month.] That is, the first month, called here the beginning of the year, which in the ecclesiastical computation was the month Nisan. W. Lowth. See the notes on Exod. xii. 2; xiii. 4. —the fourteenth year] See chap. i. 1, 2; the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in which Jerusalem was taken, was also the eleventh year of Jehoischin's captivity, from and a measuring reed; and he stood in the gate. 3. And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, &c.] 18.—of rams, of lambs, and of goats.] Kings, princes, and tyrants, are expressed by rams, goats, and bullocks. Abp. Newcome. —[fatlings of Bashan.] See Deut. xxxii. 14. The country of Bashan beyond Jordan was celebrated for fat cattle. Calmet. 20.—at my table] The table of God is the field covered with dead bodies, the place of the slaughter of Magog, to which the birds and beasts of prey are invited, ver. 17. Michaelis. 22. So the house of Israel shall know &c.] By acts of mercy towards them, and of judgment towards their enemies. W. Lowth. 23, 24.—went into captivity for their iniquity: &c.] Not because I wanted power to rescue them, or will to do them kindness. Calmet. 25.—Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob,] See chap. xxxiv. 13; xxxvi. 24; xxxvii. 21. 26.—their shame.] The shame and reproach due to their sins. W. Lowth. 29.—for I have poured out my spirit &c.] I have plentifully stored my Church with graces of sanctification. Bp. Hall. See Isa. lix. 20, 21; a place applied by St. Paul to this very purpose, Rom. xi. 26, 27. W. Lowth. Chap. XL. The following obscure vision of Ezekiel is generally supposed to contain the description of a temple, corresponding in its structure and dimensions with that of Solomon. The Prophet, by presenting to the captives this delineation of what had been "the desire of their eyes," reminded them of the loss which they had suffered from their unrighteousness, and furnished them with a model, upon which the temple might rise again from its ruins; as it did, with less magnificence indeed, in the time of Zerubbabel. Under the particulars detailed by Ezekiel, however, we often discover the economy of a spiritual temple, which should again be filled with "the glory of the Lord coming from the east;" see chap. xlii. 2. 4. Dr. Gray. This concluding vision of a new city and temple was shewn to Ezekiel at the close of his ministry, for the consolation of his brethren, who were then commemorating by the waters of Babylon with sighs and tears the fate of their former city and temple with all its glory, which had that day been extinguished just fourteen years. The restoration of the temple and its service, here circumstantially insisted on, was well calculated to raise their drooping spirits, and renew their trust — and upon each post were palm trees.] Probably pilasters representing palm trees; the trunks forming the shafts, and the branches the capitals. Calmet. Chap. XLI. ver. 1.— which was the breadth of the tabernacle.] See Exod. xxvi. 16. 22, 23. 2.—and set me upon a very high mountain.] The expression points out mount Moriah, upon which the temple was built. W. Lowth, Calmet. This mountain was not however very high; and Michaelis remarks, that the expression probably signifies nothing more than that Jerusalem, and the true worship of God, should be very much exalted, and made known to all the world. Abp. Newcome. In this respect the expression represents the Christian Church; see Isa. ii. 1, 2. W. Lowth. —by which was as the frame of a city on the south.] Upon which; see the margin. If we suppose the Prophet brought by the Spirit from Chaldea into the land of Israel, both the temple and the city would be to the south. It appears from chap. xlviii. 15, &c. that he had a view of the holy city which was to be restored as well as of the temple. W. Lowth, Calmet. 3.—of brass.] Bright and sparkling. Abp. Newcome. See Dan. x. 6. —with a line of flax—and a measuring reed.] The former was to measure the outward and more spacious courts, and the latter to take the dimensions of the walls and buildings. Bp. Hall. 4. behold with thine eyes—declare all that thou seest to the house of Israel.] Compare chap. xliii. 10; xlix. 5. The temple now represented was designed, partly to assure the people, that their temple should be restored, and partly to serve them as a model by which they should rebuild it at their return from captivity. The Jewish writers confirm this opinion when they tell us, "that the children of the captivity, when they returned from Babylon, followed the platform of that temple which Ezekiel described, as far as their circumstances would allow." Dr. Lightfoot, W. Lowth. 5. And behold a wall on the outside of the house round about.] A wall went round the whole plain surface of the holy mountain like a parapet. Calmet. —by the cubit and an hand breadth.] Each cubit containing a cubit and a hand breadth, called the "great cubit," chap. xli. 8; and supposed equal to half a yard. The cubit used in Chaldea, where the Prophet lived, was five hand breadths. Bp. Cumberland. —of the building.] Of the outer wall; it was three yards high and three yards broad. This wall served as a security against the precipices of the mount on which the temple stood. Abp. Newcome. And it separated The description of the gates. Before CHRIST 574. face was the way toward the east. 6. Then came he &c.] After having passed the court of the Gentiles, he came to the eastern gate of the court of Israel. Abp. Newcome. 11. — and the length of the gate.] By this some understand the height of the gate. Houbigant renders it, "and the length of the entry of the gate." W. Lowth. Abp. Newcome. 14. He made also posts of threescore cubits.] The angel described the height of the columns or pillars which were to support the rooms or stories over the arch of the gate, and these were in height sixty cubits; the whole building being divided into three stories like those described, chap. xlii. 6. Calmet. 16. And there were narrow windows] These windows were narrow without, but broad within to disperse the light. The margin of our Bibles thus explains it, and refers to † Kings vi. 4. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. — and likewise to the arches.] The word here 17. Then brought he me into the outward court.] The court of Israel or of the people; the outer of the two courts, mentioned 2 Kings xxi. 5. Herod added a third, called "the court of the Gentiles." Abp. Newcome, W. Lowth. 18. — the lower pavement.] This was called the lower pavement, with respect to the several ascents which were still to go up the nearer you came to the temple. Dr. Lightfoot. 19. — the lower gate] The western gate of the porch or entry. W. Lowth. 22. — and the arches thereof were before them.] Or at the entrance of them. W. Lowth. 23. And the gate of the inner court was over against the gate toward the north, and toward the east;] The Before CHRIST 574. Or, galleries, or, porches. Or, within. without. whose face was. galleries, or, porches. The description of the gates. Before CHRIST 574. was over against the gate toward the north, and toward the east; and he measured from gate to gate an hundred cubits. 30. — five and twenty cubits long, and five cubits broad.] Length seems here to be taken for height, as before, ver. 11. W. Lowth. 43. — within were hooks.] Hooks for hanging up the beasts slain for sacrifice, in order to the flaying of them; Before CHRIST 574. The measures, parts, chambers of the temple. Before CHRIST 574. [ Or, ward, or, ordinance: and so ver. 46. 45. — This chamber,— is for the priests.] The word "chamber" is put here for a suite of chambers. The wing or row of buildings on the north side of the inner court was destined for the use of the priests, who were in constant attendance according to their courses upon the service of the temple; see Numb. xviii. 5; 1 Chron. vi. 49; 2 Chron. xiii. 11. Calmet, W. Lowth. — of the charge of the house.] They had the charge of the sacred vessels, of the precious vails, of the perfumes, &c. Calmet. The word "priests" may here include Levites under it. W. Lowth. 46. And the chamber whose prospect is toward the north] Another wing or row of chambers on the south side of the inner court is for the descendants of the family of Aaron, whose office it is to attend upon the service of the altar, and keep the fire burning thereon perpetually, Lev. vi. 12, 13. W. Lowth. 47. — and the altar that was before the house.] The altar stood in the inner court, just before the porch that entered into the temple. W. Lowth. 4.— before the temple.] Or, according to the breadth of the temple; that is, corresponding to it. W. Lowth. 6. And the side chambers were three, one over another. They were three stories high. W. Lowth. — and they entered into the wall] The beams of the chamber entered into the outer wall built opposite to that of the temple; see 1 Kings vi. 6. 10. Abp. Newcome. — but they had not hold in the wall of the house.] Though the beams of the chamber were admitted into the outer wall, they rested on the projections of the inner wall: either from reverence to the sacred place, or to secure it from fire. Abp. Newcome. 8.— the height of the house] Of these chambers three stories high, in which sense the word is used ver. 9. W. Lowth. — the foundations of the side chambers] Meaning perhaps the inner side wall of the lower chambers, on which the beams of their ceilings rested; see ver. 5. Abp. Newcome. — great cubits.] See chap. xl. 5, and note. The chambers and ornaments of the temple. Before CHRIST 574. 9. — and that which was left] Or the void space. 11. — were toward the place that was left.] The doors of the side chambers opened into this void space or gallery, one northward and another southward. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. 12. — the separate place] By this most understand the temple proper. Abp. Newcome. 14. — the breadth of the face of the house.] The whole temple with the porch and walls was a hundred cubits in length westward. W. Lowth. 15. And he measured the length of the building over against the separate place which was behind it.] Noldius translates this sentence more clearly thus: "And he measured the length of the building which was before the separate place, and that which was behind it." Abp. Newcome. The east and west sides having been measured before, the north and south sides are here re- presented as measuring each an hundred cubits. W. Lowth. 16. — and the windows were covered:] With lattices, or curtains, or both. Abp. Newcome. 18. And it was made with cherubims &c.] On the inside of the house the walls were adorned with carved work of cherubim and palm trees as in Solomon's temple; see 1 Kings vi. 29. W. Lowth. — two faces:] Which appeared; the other two (of the ox and the eagle) being supposed below the plain. The cherubim had each four faces; see chap. i. vi. W. Lowth. 22. — the walls thereof.] The sides. W. Lowth. — This is the table that is before the Lord.] Compare chap. xlv. 16. The words "altar" and "table" are used promiscuously; see Heb. xiii. 10; where by "altar" the Apostle means "table." Abp. Newcome. Before CHRIST 574. measures. Chap. XLII. ver. 1.—the utter court] Utter with respect to the temple itself; the court of the priests is meant. Howbignt, Abp. Newcome, Calmet. 4.—a way of one cubit; This some understand of an entrance at each end of the cloister. W. Lowth. 5. Now the upper chambers were shorter: &c.] The marginal reading is to be preferred; the sense of which is, "for the galleries did abate of these;" that is, took of these more than of the lowest and middlemost part of the building. The reason of this is assigned in the next verse. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. 6.—had not pillars] To support the galleries or balconies; the two upper stories had balconies standing out of them, the breadth of which was taken out of the rooms themselves, and this made them so much the narrower, because the weight of the balconies was not supported by pillars, as the rooms over the cloisters of the outward court were, but only by the wall. W. Lowth. 8.—and, lo, before the temple were an hundred cubits.] The angel conducts the Prophet from the north side of the court to the south side, and in passing before the temple he observes the dimensions of the cast front; see chap. xli. 14. Calmet, W. Lowth. 10.—in the thickness of the wall] In the breadth of the wall; that is, in the breadth of ground which that wall enclosed. W. Lowth. 11. And the way before them] The alley or way of ten cubits within the chambers; see ver. 4. Calmet. 13.—they be holy chambers.] The shewbread, the remainder of the meat offering, sin offering, and trespass offering, are expressly called the most holy things, Lev. vi. 14. 17; xxiv. 9; Numb. xviii. 9; and are distinguished from the holy things, such as are the peace offerings, first fruits, and tithes, Lev. xxi. 22. These were to be eaten within the precincts of the temple by the same laws. W. Lowth. 14. When the priests enter therein,] Within the inner court, chap. xliv. 17. W. Lowth. then shall they not go out of the holy place into the utter court.] Moses had given the same direction, in saying, that the high priest and the inferiour priests should use their dress of ceremony when they entered into the tabernacle to perform their functions; insi- The measures of the outward court. God's glory cometh into the temple. approach to those things which are for the people. —by the carcasses of their kings in their high places.] By the idols set up by their kings in the high places, Jer. xvi. 18. W. Lowth. We may understand by "carcasses," bodies offered to idols. Bp. Hall. — and it was shut.] After that the glory of the Lord had entered that way. W. Lowth. 2. — it shall not be opened.] Unless at particular seasons; see chap. xliii. 4; xlvi. 1, 2. W. Lowth. — because the Lord, the God of Israel, &c.] That is, the glory of the Lord; as it is expressed, chap. xliii. 2. 4: see also Exod. xxiv. 10; Isa. vi. 1. 5. W. Lowth. 3. It is for the prince:] Solomon placed his seat at the entrance into the inner court before the altar of the Lord, 2 Chron. vi. 13; and here the prince seems to have had his place in aftertimes, whenever he came to worship in the temple, 2 Chron. xxiii. 13; xxxiv. 31. Not far from which place a seat was placed for the high priest, as may be gathered from Eli's seat, 1 Sam. i. 9; and from whence the high priest pronounced the blessing after the service was ended; see Ecclus. l. 20. W. Lowth, Dr. Lightfoot. — to eat bread before the Lord:] To eat part of the peace offerings, chap. xlvi. 2. Bread stands for all sorts of entertainment; see Gen. xliii. 31; and parti- Ordinances for the priests. Before CHRIST 574. 8. In their setting of] See 2 Kings xvi. 14; xxi. 4, 5. 7. —and the wall between me and them.] The sense in the margin is better, "for there was but a wall between me and them." W. Lowth. 10, 11. — shew the house to the house of Israel.] It was indeed a model for them to imitate, as far as they were able; but we may probably suppose, that the words may have a further view and import; that the model of God's temple here set forth, is but a pattern of heavenly things, and a type of that pure Church, "built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;" which we may hope God may in due time every where restore. W. Lowth. 12. — of the mountain] Mount Moriah, upon which the temple stood. W. Lowth. We learn from Josephus, that the Asmonean princes built a tower close to the north side of the mount, which became famous toward the close of the Jewish history, under the name of the Tower Antonia. This was a profanation of the holy ground. Calmet. be most holy. Behold this is the law of the house. 13. — the bottom] The base of the altar. W. Lowth. — the higher place] In the Hebrew, "the back of the altar," which imports that this base was the protuberance, or the widest part of it. W. Lowth, Houbigant. 14. And from the bottom upon the ground even to the lower settle] The "settle" means the imbenching or narrowing: the altar was made narrower as it came nearer to the top. On this lower settle or ledge the priests walked round the altar. W. Lowth, Abp. Newcome. 15. — four horns.] One at each corner; see Exod. xxvii. 2. They arose from the uppermost bench, where the priest stood to officiate. W. Lowth. In two ancient Egyptian pictures, taken from the ruins of Herculaneum, are representations of altars, having at each of their four corners a rising, which continues square to about half its height, but from thence is gradually sloped off to an edge or a point. It is likely that these are "the horns of the altar" alluded to in Scripture; and probably this is their true figure; see Ps. cxviii. 27. To retain the victim was perhaps the primary use of these horns. Fragments to Calmet. 17. — stairs] See Exod. xx. 26. It was an inclined plane; God forbade his priests to go up by steps to his altar. The ascent up to the altar was by a gentle rising, which was thirty-two cubits in length, and sixteen in breadth, and landed (for the convenience of the priests who went up to sacrifice) upon the upper ledge or settle next the hearth, or the top of the altar. Dean Prideaux. 17. — the inner court.] The court just before the temple where the altar of burnt offering stood, ver. 27 of this chapter. W. Lowth. — with linen] The ephod, mitre, breeches, and girdle, which was the habit of the ordinary priests, were all of fine linen, contrived "for glory and beauty," Exod. xxviii. 40. W. Lowth. 18. — These are the ordinances of the altar] At the Before CHRIST that is, the mountain of God. that is, the lion of God. The measures, and the ordinances of the altar. Before CHRIST 574. to offer burnt offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon. 18. — with any thing that causeth sweat.] Lest those holy vestments may be soiled, or any outward uncleanliness may be caused thereby. Bp. Hell. 19. — and they shall not sanctify the people with their garments.] In touching them with their holy clothes. Whatever touched any thing holy, became itself holy, and was no longer to be profaned by vulgar use, Exod. xxx. 29; Lev. vi. 27. The altar sanctifies the gift, Matt. xxiii. 19. What touched the altar or the furniture of the tabernacle was holy; probably what the holy garments touched was so too. Abp. Seeker. 20. Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long;] See Lev. xxi. The ministers of the sacred things shall not shave their heads so as to make them bare, nor yet shall they wear their hair long and disordered; but, avoiding the vanity of either extreme, they shall only cut their hair. Dean Spencer. 21. — without the sanctuary.] In some place appointed for that purpose within the precincts of the holy mountain. The temple itself is called the "inner house," chap. xli. 15; xlii. 15; to distinguish it from the outer court and precincts thereof. The body of the bullock, whose blood was to sanctify the altar, was to be burnt without the camp, by order of the law, Exod. xxix. 14. W. Lowth, Calmet. 22. — a kid of the goats] This is over and above the sacrifices of consecration prescribed, Exod. xxix. 1. W. Lowth. 22. — for their wives] See Lev. xxi. 14. 23. — a ram out of the flock] Called the "ram of consecration," Exod. xxix. 31; Lev. viii. 22. W. Lowth. 23. — the holy and profane.] What places, according to the ceremonial law, are holy, and what common; what things are defiled, and what clean. Abp. Newcome. 24. — shall cast salt] Upon the victims, according to the law in Lev. ii. 13. W. Lowth. 24. And in controversy they shall stand in judgment;] See Deut. xvii. 8, 9; and the people were to seek the law at their mouths, Mal. ii. 7; that is, to enquire of them the purport and meaning of it. When the supreme judicial power was placed in the Sanhedrim, the majority of that court consisted chiefly of such as had the chief stations among the priests: see Acts iv. 5, 6. W. Lowth. 26. Seven days] See Exod. xxix. 35; Lev. viii. 33. — and they shall consecrate themselves.] The expression in the original is, "they shall fill their hands." The priests were consecrated to their office partly by the act of filling their hands with what they were to offer, Exod. xxix. 24. Calmet, W. Lowth. Chap. XLIV. ver. 1. — of the outward sanctuary] In 26. — seven days.] His uncleanness continued for seven days by the law, Numb. xix. 11; and the priests were to reckon to him seven days more, before he was to be admitted into the sanctuary. W. Lowth.