HATH MINGLED] Hebrew, mahsak 'has mingled.' God is here represented as mixing a powerfully intoxicating potion for the Egyptian princes. Lxx. ekerasen, V., miscuit, has mixed.'

AND THEY HAVE CAUSED EGYPT TO ERR] Hebrew, vě-hithu eth Mitzraim, 'and they have caused Egypt to wander' or 'go astray'; the Lxx., eplaneesan ; V., errare fecerunt. [Consult chap. xxviii. 7; Job xii. 25; and Jer. 1. 6.]

AS A DRUNKEN MAN STAGGERETH IN HIS VOMIT] Hebrew, ke-hitahoth shikkor beqio, as the wandering of a drunkard with his vomit'; Lxx., hōs planatai ho methuōn kai ho emōn hama, 'as wanders he who is drunk and he who vomits together'; V., sicut errat ebrius et vomens, 'as one strays who is drunk and vomiting.'

CHAPTER XXI. VERSE 5.

Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink; arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield.

This and the preceding are part of the 'burden' of Babylon, in which the capture of that great city is foreseen and predicted. The intemperate feasting which preceded that event and rendered it possible is well known, and will be more particularly noticed hereafter. [See Note on Dan. v. 30.]

CHAPTER XXI. VERSE 14.

The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled.

To the thirsty water was supplied; the one that fled was 'prevented,' i. e. anticipated, with bread. Bread and water are here again conjoined as the essentials of human sustenance.

CHAPTER XXII. VERSE 13.

And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to-morrow we shall die.

AND DRINKING WINE] Hebrew, vě-shathoth yayin, and drinking wine'; Lxx. kai piein oinon, V. et bibere vinum, and to drink wine.'

The concluding clause, 'Let us eat and drink,' etc., expresses a sentiment of riotous animalism which had at that early period passed into a proverb, and along with the sentiment the proverb descended to later ages. [See Note on I Cor. xv. 32.]

CHAPTER XXII. VERSE 24.

And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons.

VESSELS OF CUPS, VESSELS OF FLAGONS] Hebrew, kèlai hahaggahnoth kèlai han-něbalim, vessels of bowls (or basins), vessels of pitchers.' The V. has 'from vessels of bowls (craterarum) to every vessel of musical instruments (musicorum).' The margin of the A. V. has 'or instruments of viols.' [The Hebrew nabel (or nèbèl) denoted articles as widely separated in structure and use as the skin-bottle, the pitcher, and the ten-stringed harp or lyre (Psa. xxxiii. 2).] The T. applies all these expressions to the employment of very young children in the offices of the temple.

CHAPTER XXIV. VERSE 7.

The new wine mourneth, the vine languisheth, all the merryhearted do sigh.

THE NEW WINE MOURNETH] Hebrew, ahval tirosh, 'hung down ( = mourned) has the vine-fruit.' The primary senses of ah-val are to be languid,' 'to walk with the head cast down,' which easily acquire the secondary sense of ‘to mourn.' Gesenius thus cites the passage,-'the new wine mourneth,' i. e. the clusters mourn.' Lxx., pentheesei oinon, the wine will mourn'; Aquila, epentheesen ho parōrismos, 'the fruit out of season has mourned'; V., luxit vindemia, 'the vintage has mourned.' The Syriac reads, 'the corn will be turned into grief'; the Arabic, the vine will grieve.'

THE VINE LANGUISHETH] Hebrew, umlellah gaḥphen, ‘languished has the vine'; Lxx., pentheesei ampelos, 'the vine will mourn'; V., infirmata est vitis, 'the vine has languished away'; the T., 'because the vines are worn away.'

The prophet introduces us into the vineyard, and speaking of future events as having actually transpired-a form frequently adopted in Scripture to give emphasis to prophesy-he points to the tirosh, now approaching maturity, and cries out, "The fruit upon the vine has hung down its head, as if mourning for its fate; the vine has languished, as if for very sadness; all the merry-hearted who have been wont to pluck the vintage with delight have sighed over the scene of desolation before them." The prediction is one of drought. This description fixes the meaning of tirosh as definitely as the context could do it.

CHAPTER XXIV. VERSE 9.

They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it.

THEY SHALL NOT DRINK WINE WITH A SONG] Hebrew, bash-shir lo yishtu yayin, with a song they shall not drink wine;' Lxx., eeschuntheesan, ouk epion oinon, they have been ashamed, they have not drunk wine'; V., cum cantico non bibent vinum, 'with a song they shall not drink wine.' The tirosh having been shrivelled up for lack of water, the supply of grape-wine would be cut off.

STRONG DRINK SHALL be BITTER TO THEM THAT DRINK IT] Hebrew, yāmar shakar le-shothahv, bitter shall be the sweet-drink to those who drink it'; Lxx., pikron egeneto to sikera tois pinousin, bitter has become sicera to those who drink (it)'; V., amara erit potio bibentibus illam, ‘bitter will be drink to those imbibing it.' For shakar the T. has attiqah, 'the old' (wine).

It admits of question whether the prophet is predicting that the sweet-drink should be bitter to the taste, or bitter figuratively on account of the smallness of the supply. The severe drought which would cause the grapes to yield no payin would operate so as to make the juices of other fruits lose their sweetness, and to be greatly lessened in amount. It is obvious from the contrast of 'sweet' and 'bitter '-a contrast wholly obscured in the A. V. translation of shakar as 'strongdrink'-that shakar was valued on account of its sweetness, a quality which disappears in proportion as the sugar of the juice is decomposed and converted into alcohol and carbonic acid gas. [See Note on Gen. i. 29.] Sweet shakar, like some sweet wines, might be intoxicating, yet who has not read of the sweet and innocent wine of Lesbos, which could be drunk almost in any quantity without harm? And the price put upon shakar for its sweetness, shows that it was not mere alcoholic strength which caused its consumption by ancient topers, as in the case of the preference shown for ports and sherries by modern wine-drinkers.

CHAPTER XXIV. VERSE 11.

There is a crying for wine in the streets; all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone.

THERE IS A CRYING FOR WINE IN THE STREETS] Hebrew, tzèvahkhah al hay. yayin bakhutzoth, 'an outcry (is) for wine in the outside places'; Lxx., ololuzete peri tou oinou pantachee, 'howl ye for wine everywhere'; V., clamor erit super vino in plateis, 'a cry shall be on account of wine in the town-streets.'

Yayin may here be representative of the whole produce of the vineyard, the fruit of which entered so largely into the diet of the people. But if the outcry was for intoxicating drink, what a picture of sensuality and demoralization is presented!

CHAPTER XXIV. VERSE 13.

When thus it shall be in the midst of the land among the people, there shall be as the shaking of an olive tree, and as the gleaning grapes when the vintage is done.

AS THE GLEANING GRAPES WHEN THE VINTAGE IS DONE] Hebrew, kě-olületh im kahlah vatzir, as the gleaning when the cutting is completed.' This 'cutting' (vatzir) is equivalent to 'gathering,' which was usually effected, as before explained, by the use of a sharp instrument—a pruning-hook. Symmachus has hōs epiphullides ean suntelesthee trugeetos, 'as the small grapes after the harvest is concluded'; the V., et racemi cum fuerit finita vindemia, and the grape-stalks. when the vintage shall have been ended.' St Jerome must have read vě-eshkeloth instead of kě-olaloth.

CHAPTER XXIV. VERSE 20.

The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.

THE EARTH SHALL REEL TO AND FRO LIKE A DRUNKARD] Hebrew, noā tahnua eretz kish-shikkor, 'reeling shall the earth reel like a drunkard.' Nuah signifies to vacillate,' to swing to and fro.' Lxx., eklinen hōs ho methuōn kai kraipalōn, 'it swerves as he who is drunk and sick from a debauch'; Theodotion, salō saleutheesetai he gee hōs methuōn, 'with a shaking the earth shall be shaken as one drunk'; V., agitatione agitabitur terra sicut ebrius, 'with a shaking the earth is shaken as a drunken man.'

CHAPTER XXV. VERSE 6.

And in this mountain shall the LORD of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined.

A FEAST OF FAT THINGS] Hebrew, mishta shemahnim, a feast of fatnesses' fat things. We are not to understand fat meat as distinguished from lean, but well-fed, prime flesh, with the best quality of food, including the oily ingredients, which were highly prized.

A FEAST OF WINE ON THE LEES] Hebrew, mishta shemahrim, 'a feast of preserves.' From shah-mar, 'to keep,' 'to guard,' 'to take care of,' comes shemerim, 'things specially cared for,' or, as we say, PRESERVES = dainties, confections. That it means something preserved is not disputed, for Gesenius, who approves the rendering of the A. V. in his definition of shemahrim, explains how 'wine,' which is not named in the Hebrew, is supposed to be referred to:"Shemarim, dregs (of wine), so called because when wine is kept on the lees its strength and color are preserved." But there is no need to conceive an allusion either to wines or their refuse. The feast is said to be as much one of shemahrim (confections) as of shemahnim (fat things). If any allusion to wine had been intended and if shemahrim had been used in the sense of dregs or refuse, what would have hindered the use of the words mishta yayin al shemaraiv—‘a feast of wine upon his dregs'? Is it credible that the prophet wrote so obscurely for the sake of the alliteration involved in mishta shemahnim and mishta shemahrim? It is true that the phrase shemareiha, the dregs thereof,' occurs in Psa. lxxv. 8, but the reference is to the insoluble parts of the mixture in the cup of the Divine wrath-the drugs mingled with the wine, and not to the dregs of the wine before drawn off from the vat. In Isa. li. 17, 22, where 'dregs' appears in the A. V., a different Hebrew word is employed.

OF FAT THINGS FULL OF MARROW] Hebrew, shemahnim memukhaim, 'of fatness marrowed out'= taken from the marrow-bone, provision exceedingly rich and abundant.

OF WINES ON The lees well refINED] Hebrew, shemahrim mezuqqaqim, ‘of preserves well clarified.'

The Lxx. indicates a different reading of the Hebrew text:-'In this mountain they shall drink joyfulness (euphrosuneen); they shall drink wine (piontai oinɩn); they shall anoint themselves with ointment in this mountain; Aquila, poton lipasmatōn diulismenon, a feast of fatnesses, (a feast) well clarified'; Symmachus, poton trugiōn diulismenōn, ‘a feast of lees, of things well clarified.' The Syriac has 'a fat feast, a feast, I say, preserved and fat'; V., 'in this mountain a feast of fat things (convivium pinguium), a feast of vintage-produce (convivium vindemia),

a feast of marrowy things (convivium medullatorum); of vintage-produce wellcleansed (vindemia defacata).' Dr Gill quotes a rendering by Fortunatus Seacchus :-"The Lord of hosts will make to all people a feast of ointments, a feast of those (animals) that are kept; of ointments full of marrow; of those that are kept, pure"; i. e. beasts well-kept and clean, according to the law of Moses.*

Two festal luxuries supply the images presented in this verse: fat things,-rich, marrowy meats; and confections, such as jellies and syrups: the former served up in their most savory form, the other in their purest state. These delicacies are, as they ever have been, the chief components of a sumptuous Eastern feast, and together they strikingly represent the spiritual provision, full of strength and sweetness, made for the wants of our fallen race. God's spiritual gifts are not less plentiful and pleasant than His material bounties. Compare Psa. Ixiii. 5, 'My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness'; and Psa. cxix. 103, 'How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!'

CHAPTER XXVII. VERSES 2, 3.

a In that day sing ye unto her, A vineyard of red wine. LORD do keep it; I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day.

V. 2. A VINEYARD OF RED WINE] Hebrew, kèrèm khěměr, 'a vineyard of foaming juice.' [See Prel. Dis. on KHEMER, and Note on Deut. xxxii. 14.] Many

The A. V. rendering was retained by the Rev. Benjamin Parsons, author of 'Anti-Bacchus' and The Wine Question Settled,' who remarks in the latter work (pp. 47-8)-"This passage receives a striking illustration from Pliny. Speaking of the tipplers of his time he says, 'That we may take the more wine, we break its strength by the filter.' His words are, Ut plus capiamus vini sacco frangimus vires. And again, Utilissimum vinum omnibus sarco viribus fractis; the most useful wine is that which has had all its strength broken by the filter.' In the notes on the Delphin edition of Horace, Car. lib. xi. 6, it is said, Veteres nempe mustum priusquam ferbuisset per saccum toties colabunt ut defacaretur, atque sic adempta quæ vini vim aliit, augetque, face, liquidius, imbecillius, lenius, ac dulcius reddebant vinum, potuique jucundius: "The ancients filtered their wines repeatedly before they could have fermented, and thus the fæces which nourish the strength of the wine being taken away, they rendered the wine itself more liquid, weaker, lighter, sweeter, and more pleasant to drink.' The faces which were here taken away were no doubt the gluten which, though not known at that time by its scientific name, was the active principle of fermentation; and Dr Ure, in his late 'Dictionary of the Arts,' on the word 'Fermentation,' tells us that if the 'gluten or yeast' is removed by filtering, or by any other means caused to subside, fermentation will not take place. See, then, how exactly the words of the prophet and of these naturalists agree. Isaiah speaks of preserved wines well refined,' or 'well filtered.' Pliny tells us that wines were thus filtered to destroy their strength or spirit, and that the wines which had all their strength-not, mind ye, a part, but omnibus viribus, all their strength-broken by the filter, were the best wines. The Delphin commentator adds that this filtering took place before they could have fermented; and Dr Ure informs us that when this is done grape-juice will not ferment. Hence, then, we learn that the shemarim, the wines on the lees,' or preserved wines well refined,' mentioned by Isaiah, were unfermented wines, were wines without any strength or spirit, and on that account were most esteemed in ancient days, and called the best and most useful wines. This harmless nutritious drink, therefore, is the beverage to which God compares the blessings of the gospel feast."

The Rev. W. Ritchie, in his able essay entitled 'Scripture Testimony against Intoxicating Wine,' observes:-"On the whole we agree with those who regard this word (shemahrim) as meaning wine on the lees, old and pure wine. The lees are the refuse of the wine which lies at the bottom of the vessel, and preserves the wine in its freshness and flavor. [But there is no proof that the unfermented albumen 'preserves the wine,' or does any thing (until itself fermented) to the saccharine juice.-EDs.] The term thus becomes a brief name for the richest and best wines. But such wine needed to be strained ere it could be used, and hence the words added by the prophet, 'well refined,' Here, however, the whole tone of thought and expression forbids the idea of supposing the inspired penman to speak, in this promise, of intoxicating wine. We are led, on the contrary, to think of the rich, refreshing, unfermented juice of the grape-the pure wine which makes glad man's heart. This alone is a fit emblem of the heavenly blessings of salvation which are here promised by God to our ruined world."

Cranmer's Version (ed. 1585) reads:-"A feast of plenteous and delicate things, even of most pleasant and daintie dishes."